Icelandic disability funding rises by 41 billion krónur in two years

Government funding for disability and services for people with disabilities is set to rise by 41 billion krónur between the 2025 budget and the 2027 budget bill, Morgunblaðið reports. The allocation will increase from 112.5 billion to 153.5 billion krónur, with the largest share going to disability-related costs.

The 41 billion króna increase is roughly equal to the proposed 2027 funding for specialised services and nursing outside hospitals. It is nearly 2 billion krónur more than the combined allocations for the police and the Coast Guard, and 1 billion more than planned investment in transport.

The increase also matches the proposed allocation for municipalities and regional affairs. It is 5.3 billion krónur more than the 35.7 billion planned for parental leave payments, and 2.6 billion more than the 38.4 billion earmarked for medicines.

Guðlaugur Þór Þórðarson, an MP for the Independence Party, called the increase “enormous” and said it amounted to two-thirds of the funding for upper secondary schools. He said the budget bill showed investment being cut across the board, contrary to what had been promised.

Although disability benefits are linked to the wage index, Þórðarson said, the increase was not helping those with the least. He argued that it would use up the government’s entire fiscal room and was likely one reason it was taxing wherever possible and seeking money from state-owned companies such as Landsvirkjun. He questioned what the situation would be in five or 10 years if the trend continued.