Ombudsman received record number of complaints in 2022
Ombudsman Ger Deering branded the lack of action to improve transport accessibility for people with disabilities as 'shameful neglect'. File picture
Ombudsman Ger Deering has described as "shameful neglect" the lack of Government action on transport access issues for people with disabilities.
It comes as 4,791 complaints were received by the Ombudsman last year, the highest number to date and a rise of almost 20% on 2021.
The majority of complaints received concerned Government departments. While just 14 complaints were received concerning the Disability Act, this represents a rise of 133% on 2021.
Half of the complaints concerning the Disability Act related to access to services, with Ombudsman Ger Deering saying the response to previous reports highlighting transport access issues has been "greatly lacking".
Despite calling for action from Government since 2011, Mr Deering said he finds himself once again highlighting the unfair and unacceptable situation which he described as "shameful neglect".
“All too often in this country we look back at shameful things that have happened in the past and wonder how such things could have happened. We resolve never to let such things happen again and reassure ourselves that they would not happen now.
"I believe the manner in which people with disabilities continue to be denied access to personal transport supports is nothing short of shameful,” he said.
The Ombudsman received 1,842 complaints about government departments, a 73% increase on 2021 and the highest number of complaints received in this area since the late 1980s.
The increase in complaints is due to 835 concerning delays within the Department of Foreign Affairs passport service. The majority of complaints were from applicants living in the North, and represent a tenfold increase on the 81 complaints received in 2021.
Some 621 complaints were about the Department of Social Protection.
The Ombudsman received 1,269 complaints about the local authorities, 60% of which were housing related. Cork City Council was the subject of 78 complaints while 65 were directed towards Cork County Council.
One complaint about Cork City Council was received from Cork Traveller Women’s Network after a couple discovered that the council had removed 12 years from their waiting time on the social housing list for supplying required documentation two months late in November 2011. The Council set this date as the new start date for their social housing application, despite being on the list since 1998 which the Ombudsman said was “unreasonable and disproportionate”.
The Ombudsman received 790 complaints about public bodies in the health and social care sector in 2022, 300 of which concerned the HSE, while 104 concerned Tusla. A number of complaints concerned no carers being available despite care hours being approved.
The Ombudsman received 67 complaints about private nursing homes in 2022, a decrease of 19% from 2021 but an increase on the 53 complaints received in 2020. The majority (38) related to the care and treatment of residents.
The Ombudsman received 66 complaints from people living in direct provision in 2022, 59 of which concerned the providers of direct provision services. This represents a 33% decrease on the 99 complaints received in 2021. Among the issues complained about were accommodation (25), transfers from one direct provision centre to another (21), and complaints about centre staff (8).
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