Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2025-12-16
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Holly Cairns (SD), Cork South-West

The Taoiseach says he is listening but he has inadvertently told us very clearly that he is not. I ask again whether the Government will introduce a €400 winter payment. Investment in services is welcome and absolutely essentially but, with respect, it is not what I am asking about. For example, investment in special schools will not put food on the table, pay bills or pay people's rent. Ireland has the lowest rate of employment for disabled people in Europe and one of the highest costs of living. People were outside the Dáil last week, in the middle of a storm, to protest. They told us how embarrassing it was for them to have to do that.
One in five disabled people in Ireland lives in consistent poverty. That was before the Government slashed their payments. The Government is either not listening, does not get it or simply does not want to do anything about it. Which is it?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2025-12-16/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:28+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-12-16