The Social Democrats today called on the government to immediately introduce an emergency winter payment of \u20ac400 for people with disabilities.<\/p>\n
The call was made at briefing in Leinster House this morning, which was attended by representatives from the Disability Federation of Ireland, Access for All Ireland, and the Irish Wheelchair Association.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the event, the party\u2019s disability spokesperson Liam Quaide said:<\/p>\n
\u201cDisabled people are under real financial pressure. They face major additional costs when it comes to healthcare, transport, energy, housing, equipment and other supports needed for daily living.<\/p>\n
\u201cToo often, they are forced to choose between basic necessities like heating their home and putting food on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cYet, instead of easing this pressure, Budget 2026 left disabled people \u20ac1,400 worse off compared to last year. This was an indefensible political decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cPrior to the budget, the Social Democrats had proposed an \u20ac80 per month cost of disability payment, in addition to a \u20ac15 weekly rise in Disability Allowance. Combined, these measures would have increased disabled people’s incomes by over \u20ac1,800 per year.<\/p>\n
\u201cDisabled people cannot afford further delays.\u00a0That is why, following a campaign led by a coalition of disability organisations, we are today calling on the government to immediately introduce an emergency winter payment of \u20ac400 for disabled people. We also want to see a clear, time-bound commitment for the introduction of a permanent cost of disability payment that addresses the serious and ongoing financial burden of living with a disability.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eoin Hayes TD, the party\u2019s social protection spokesperson, said:<\/p>\n
\u201cIreland is a country that should take care of its most vulnerable citizens, including disabled people who often must fight for the most basic services and supports.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt a time of bumper corporation tax receipts, the government is choosing to leave disabled people out in the cold for another winter. Their own programme for government calls for the introduction of a permanent cost of disability payment \u2013 something they failed to deliver in their first budget.<\/p>\n
\u201cOrganisations representing disabled people should not be put in a position where they have to ask for emergency measures just to get their members through the winter. An emergency payment of \u20ac400 is the minimum of what\u2019s now required until such a time that a permanent cost-of-disability measure is put in place.\u201d<\/p>\n
January 14, 2026<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Social Democrats today called on the government to immediately introduce an emergency winter payment of \u20ac400 for people with disabilities. The call was made at briefing in Leinster House this morning, which was attended by representatives from the Disability Federation of Ireland, Access for All Ireland, and the Irish Wheelchair Association. Speaking at the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":15033,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[499,796,652,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-disability","category-eoin-hayes","category-liam-quaide","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n