Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 17:

In page 11, to delete lines 36 and 37.

The intention when drafting Part 7 was to develop provisions to protect persons from liability where they took decisions in good faith on the personal welfare of a person with capacity difficulties. The primary target group for these provisions was intended to be health care professionals. When drafting the provisions, we also thought in terms of family, friends or neighbours who might have to take decisions on behalf of a person at a time of emergency.

Although it was never the intention to create a new category of informal decision-makers, the feedback on the Bill as published indicated that stakeholders were concerned we were creating such a category and were giving too many rights to that group, thus potentially undermining the impetus for a person to take on a formal decision-making role under the Bill, with all the consequent obligations.

In that context, the amendments proposed to sections 53 and 54 remove all references to "informal decision makers". Instead, the provisions of Part 7 can apply to anyone other than those who have formal roles in terms of taking decisions with, or on behalf of, another person.

I have proposed consequential amendments Nos. 17 and 19 which remove references to informal decision-makers from the Bill. As these references will now be removed, I ask Deputy Anne Ferris, who has proposed a similar amendment to section 2 in her amendment No. 18, not to press the amendment.