Parkinson’s Ireland Pre-Budget Submission 2026

Parkinson’s Ireland (PI) recently put together our pre-budget submission for 2026, calling on the government to address the increasing rate of Parkinson’s Disease (PD), by increasing the funding it provides to PI for our Parkinson’s Nurse Specialist Service in County Cork and a dedicated counselling service. We also ask the government to provide equal access to a Community Neurorehabilitation Team across the country and to increase the number of consultant neurologists in Ireland, starting with providing access to consultant neurologists in five regional hospitals.

PI provides vital services within the community for people with PD and those affected by PD. These services such as providing access to PD nurse specialists, speech and language therapy and physiotherapy are crucial in preventing
hospitalisations and aiding in long-term rehabilitation after a hospital stay.

PD is the second most common neurodegenerative disease and the rate of PD is projected to double by 2050. Therefore, the need for further services will increase rapidly over the coming years.

Parkinson’s Ireland met with Minister for Disability, Hildegarde Naughton on Tuesday, 20th May to discuss our asks:

1. Provide state funding for our Cork nurse service
2. Provide state funding to set up a dedicated counselling service
3. Provide equal access to a Community Neurorehabilitation Team across the country
4. Increase the number of consultant neurologists in Ireland, starting with providing access to consultant neurologists in 5 regional hospitals

To download our full pre-budget submission, please click here.