countries - Ireland

The information on this page was compiled in April 2009 by our country team.

Contact:
Gerard Quinn and Rachel Stevens
Centre for Disability Law and Policy
National University of Ireland, Galway
Galway
(Galway represents a consortium between its centre and similar centre's based in University College Dublin and Trinity College Dublin).

Email: cdlp.aned@nuigalway.ie
Web:   http://www.nuigalway.ie/law/disability.html

The full text can be downloaded here.

The key national bodies with responsibility for disability law and policy implementation include:

A number of government departments have specific responsibility for disability issues under the National Disability Strategy (a framework of supports for people with disabilities launched in 2004).

Ireland has signed the United Nations Convention but not the Optional Protocol.

Important national laws, policies and strategies concerning disabled people include:
The National Disability Strategy, launched in 2004, aims to improve the lives of people with disabilities in Ireland.

Key features of the national system include (including adapted items from the MISSOC database December 2008):

Disability benefits
In 2007, 264,890 people were in receipt of Social Welfare payments under the Illness, Disability and Caring programme.

Data on population:
The 2006 Census of Population indicated that 9.3% of the population or 393,8000 persons reported a disability. 62% of these persons had more than one disability.

The National Disability Survey 2006 adopted a broader range of disabilities than provided for in the Census, resulting in a total population estimate of 18.5% for persons with a disability. The nine disability types for the purposes of the National Disability Survey are seeing, hearing, speech, mobility and dexterity, memory and concentrating, intellectual and learning, emotional, psychological and mental health, pain and breathing. Males accounted for 48% of those with a disability, while 52% were female. While 11% of those with a disability fell within the 0-17 age group, 36% of people with a disability were aged over 65.

There is no national academic network but the following institutions are active in disability research:

Centre for Disability Law and Policy, National University of Ireland Galway
The Centre is dedicated to producing research that informs debate on national and international disability law reform.

The national organisation representing disabled people at the European level (European Disability Forum) is: People with Disabilities in Ireland, which is a national cross disability organisation funded by the Government.

There are a number of significant national organisations of disabled people, as well as of their families and carers. These include:

The Centre for Independent Living - The Centre for Independent Living was established by and for people with disabilities, with the aim of ensuring that people with disabilities achieved Independent Living, choice and control over their lives and full participation in society as equal citizens. There are 26 Centres nationwide.