Nem Kearns:

Rather than discussing the statutory footing and so on, I will circle back to Ms Hassett's comments on accountability in consultation. It would be great if there was an integrated process whereby, if suggestions were made by expert stakeholders or groups during a consultation, there was a responsibility to engage, implement or adopt or, where implementation or adoption could not happen, for a report to issue back outlining the reasons for same. This would provide transparency and help to refine the process over time. It would also show whether the expertise was being engaged with.

As the committee well knows, the issue underlying all of this is the ratification of the optional protocol. It needs to be a cross-cutting priority for everyone.

There is an issue around how local councils and their mechanisms are set up for consultation. There are barriers in this regard, particularly in light of how DPOs operate and exist. Specifically, a DPO that only exists on a national level is unable to participate in any local council's consultation. This matter needs to be focused on and revisited. It is impractical to expect disabled people to organise a specific organisation in each county in order to participate in consultations.