An Action Plan from 1999 is aiming at implementation of the Information Society in Ireland: Application of ICTs to the elderly/people with disabilities. As part of the strategy to address social exclusion, the special needs of older people and people with disabilities will be addressed. Good practice using established design standards will be incorporated into the development of ICT applications by Government Departments and agencies, and the National Disability Authority will be invited to monitor standards in this area.
EU Universal Service directives with its provisions for people with disabilities and older people are incorporated into Irish law, but there are no legislative requirements that telecommunications or broadcast services must be accessible.
Some concrete measures are mentioned in a Strategy for Equality (1996), a report of the Commission on the Status of People with Disabilities: All companies licensed to provide telephone services should provide text telephone, a relay service and other special or adapted equipment required by people with impairments. An example of this kind of measures in the telecom sector, Eircom offers a range of specially designed telephones, other products and services for people that are hard of hearing and for vision-impaired people. Another example is the Free Telephone Rental Scheme for everyone aged 70 and over qualifies for this scheme.
More policy related, The National Disability Authority dedicates itself to strive for the creation of a society in which people with disabilities have the right and the opportunity to live as independently as possible making full use of technology and other supports. The national information agency, Comhairle, has a commitment to the overall mainstreaming of information services to provide equality of access for all. Information formats and delivery methods will be reviewed regularly to ensure access for people with special needs such as people with disabilities and older people.
The EU Universal Service directives with its provisions for people with disabilities and older people now are incorporated into Irish law.
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