John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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1954. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department will consult with all other departments, state agencies and stakeholders to determine if a unified approach can be achieved to make all critical information on leaflets or packaging bigger and easier to read, specifically to benefit persons with disabilities (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45816/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for this question and for highlighting this important issue.

Under the Disability Act 2005 there is a fundamental requirement for goods and services – including facilities and information – provided by a public body, or on their behalf, to be accessible. This core requirement for accessibility is further reinforced by other legislation such as the European Accessibility Act (EAA) which came into force in Ireland on 28 June 2025.

Following on from the recent launch and publication of the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030, Government is committed to its full implementation, including priority actions related to increasing the accessibility of public services, including information and communication issued by government departments and public bodies.

The Strategy adopts a whole-of-government framework to further progressing Ireland’s realisation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). Article 9 of the UNCRPD emphasises the importance of accessibility by requiring measures to ensure that people with disabilities have equal access to the physical environment, transportation, information and communications, and to other facilities and services open or provided to the public. Such measures include identifying and eliminating barriers to accessibility to all public facilities and services.

The National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 has a strong focus on accessibility and on ensuring that more disabled people can access the information, communication resources and supports that they need to fully participate in all spheres of life, including cultural, social, economic and political life.

In line with the UNCRPD’s emphasis on the importance of mainstream-first service delivery, the Strategy’s commitments and priority actions are focused on ensuring that services and programmes are delivered first on the basis of mainstream inclusion, rather than segregated or specialised provision. This requires a coordinated approach across government, with each government department and public body assuming responsibility for ensuring that its programmes and services can be accessed by disabled people on an equal basis to all others.

The integration of Universal Design principles and good practice is identified with the Strategy as a key cross-cutting capacity strengthening initiative particularly in relation to achieving increased awareness of the imperative to provide more accessible information and services to the public and enhanced delivery of more coordinated action on accessibility across all Government Departments and public bodies.