Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Thursday, 14 October 2021
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters
From Accessibility to Universal Design: Discussion
Mr. Tony Cunningham:
Mr. O'Herlihy might want to clarify what I am about to say. I have a health warning around universal design. We have representation on 29 of the 30 housing and disability steering groups in local authorities around the country. We have a good reach and a good bit of experience of listening to people. I have found that the language has moved from something being compliant with building regulations. A previous Minister whom we sat down with wondered what the problem was and said he did not get it because everything was built in accordance with building regulations. People did not understand the problem because things were compliant with building regulations. We have moved on to a belief that there should be universal design. Just because there is universal design does not mean that will meet the needs of a lot of wheelchair users. There are different levels within that. What does Mr. O'Herlihy think?
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