Mr. Jarrod Clyne:

As to why the communication procedure is not within the UNCRPD itself, I do not have a good answer for the Deputy. In some human rights treaties it is done that way and in others it is integrated. There is a mix of practice. Roughly two thirds, or 100 out of 184, states parties to the convention have ratified the optional protocol, so that gives a sense of the numbers. In many cases it is years later after states have considered and seen the results of the views of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and reflect whether they are willing to have their scrutiny placed upon them. There is a range of approaches and it is also true that one can opt out the inquiry procedure. It is not something we would recommend. The inquiry procedure is not often used and one can not know if it will be applied to Ireland. My sense would be possibly not but there is the example of the United Kingdom, which was one of the first inquiries and may give the Deputy some interesting insights. There are a range of options and we would always encourage the most progressive and human rights-friendly approach.