Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 March 2004
123 Mr. Stanton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the money allocated by his Department in 2003 and 2004 to directly fund services for persons with disabilities and the money allocated to enabling persons with disabilities to more easily access services of his Department. [8639/04]
View answerMy Department is proactive in enabling persons with disabilities to more easily access services. My Department works in partnership with the Office of Public Works in implementing its access programme in relation to new buildings, the acquisition of buildings and the adaptation of the current portfolio of buildings to achieve the highest standards of access for persons with disabilities.
The Department's website was redeveloped in 2003 with accessibility and ease of use for disabled users integral to the site. The Department has also installed seven touch screen information kiosks at its local offices around the country. These allow free Internet access to clients of the Department and are of the highest accessibility standards for wheelchair users. While there is no specific budget allocation provided, the expenditure in relation to website access and that incurred in the provision of special facilities for employed persons with disabilities are funded from the administrative budget of my Department.
