Disability payout - First real test for Government

The recent local election results were clearly a wake up call for the Government.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has been indicating that the Government intends to increase spending on the 400,000 people estimated to be suffering with disabilities in this country.

The increased spending is expected to be at least 20% on the €2.5 billion now being spent annually. State spending on people with disabilities is expected to be in the region of €15 billion over the next five years.