Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 14 July 2021
43. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the way his Department and public bodies and agencies under his remit are implementing Action 16 of the National Disability and Inclusion Strategy 2017-2021 (details supplied). [38479/21]
View answerMy Department’s digital content migrated to a central platform, gov.ie, in September 2020. As users, the Department does not have a remit in the platform's overall compliance. The Department ensures, however, that relevant staff are trained properly according to the standard set out by the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) who have responsibility for the platform.
OGCIO have confirmed the following with regard to the accessibility of gov.ie:
- Gov.ie partially complies with the double-A Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 standards and the 4 principles of accessibility in that it is perceivable, operable, understandable and robust. This is similar to most other government sites across the European Union.
- One way that accessibility is being improved is by improving the level of plain language used for services on the site. This allows users of all levels to be able to find and understand information as quickly as possible.
- The gov.ie team have performed multiple accessibility reviews since the website has gone live. The gov.ie team has engaged with an accessibility expert to outline all accessibility requirements. This is an ongoing process.
- Following the last accessibility audit, 65 issues were fixed and OGCIO have since released updates to the core code of the site to improve accessibility.
My Department's digital content manager ensures all content uploaded by the team meets all accessibility requirements set out by OGCIO in relation to this directive including plain language, text formatting, and image descriptions/alt- text.
My Department has been pro-active in promoting the use of plain language to improve engagement and communications with customers (citizens and businesses), as part of the process to improve customer service delivery advocated under the Public Service Reform Plan. Training has been provided by the National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA) to Department staff. NALA has developed a range of tools to assist Departments in improving their performance and these are available to all staff via the Intranet.
Services provided by my Department are built with accessibility and universal design principles in all areas where possible, ensuring compliance with relevant regulations.
The information requested in relation to the bodies under the aegis of my Department is an operational matter for each body. The Department will request the relevant bodies to reply directly to the Deputy with the information requested in respect of their organisations.
