Sir, – The recent decision by Brittany Ferries to implement a ban on the use of passenger hoists – both personal and crew-assisted – on their vessels marks a significant and regressive step for disability rights in Ireland (“Brittany Ferries lets down passenger with MS over holiday in France”, Pricewatch, February 11th).
In correspondence to passengers, the company cites a lack of “operational resilience” and “knowledge” to manage such equipment in emergencies. This policy does not just create an “inconvenience”; it effectively ends the possibility of ferry travel to the Continent for a specific cohort of Irish citizens. It is striking this ban includes personal, manual hoists, even when the passenger takes full responsibility for their operation.
If other international maritime carriers can safely navigate the same waters while accommodating hoist users, one must ask why Brittany Ferries has concluded that it cannot. Is the safety of the ship truly at risk, or is this a case of a service provider finding the inclusion of passengers with a disability to be an administrative burden they are no longer willing to carry?
The National Transport Authority and the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission must examine whether this policy adheres to the spirit and the letter of EU Regulation 1177/2010. We cannot allow “safety reviews” to become a loophole for the erosion of equal access. – Yours, etc,
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DAVID KILGANNON,
Kinlough,
Leitrim.
