Because Disabled Access Costs Money

Another in our series of Guardian Headlines We Can Answer:

[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Why aren’t new homes fully accessible for older and disabled people?
David Brindle[/perfectpullquote]

It costs money to provide such disabled access. Further, resources are by definition scarce. We thus need to direct out ability to do things where that employment of the scarce resources adds the most value, produces the greatest benefit.

Note that this isn’t about profits, or capitalism, or markets. It’s just a simple statement of fact. We do not have the ability to do everything we wish to do. No system of societal organisation does provide that. Therefore we must prioritise.

Building the entirety of the nation’s housing stock for the 4% of households that might include a wheelchair user isn’t doing that. Therefore we don’t.

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Tim Worstall

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  • Well, builders are doing their part by building their houses from materials where you can use a breadknife to widen the doors.

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Tim Worstall

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