Noncompliance with Accessible Building Requirements in Ireland

See this article, which begins:

The massive non-compliance with disabled access regulations is a sad reflection of society, it was claimed tonight.

A new study has found that only 4% of new housing developments under construction in Dublin were accessible to people with disabilities while outside Dublin, and only 25% of one-off houses in rural areas were compliant with building regulations.

The People with Disabilities in Ireland group said owners, designers and builders were paying lip-service to the requirements for disabled access.

“It’s a big problem and with all the building that’s going on, it’s a sad reflection that there isn’t some consideration for those who find it difficult to get about,” said its chief executive Michael Ringrose.

Under Part M of the building regulations, all new houses built since 2001 are supposed to be accessible to disabled people.

But the National Disability Authority study found that none of the local authorities were obliged to carry out compliance inspections and that the regulations themselves were inadequate for the needs of disabled people.