‘Divide and conquer’ strategy ill-advised

For a Government that employs more than its fair share of highly paid spin doctors to manipulate public opinion, the Fine Gael-Labour coalition has a deplorable track record of getting things wrong.

In the latest example of an administration seen as out of touch with the realities of life among some of the most vulnerable people in Irish society, Taoiseach Enda Kenny stands accused by Joanne O’Riordan, the internationally known disability campaigner, of reneging on a personal promise that disability funding would not be cut under his rule.

One of only seven people in the world with a condition called Tetra-amelia syndrome, she was born with no limbs. Yet despite the extreme severity of her disability, the courageous Cork teenager has addressed the UN and won many awards.