Mary Seery Kearney (Fine Gael)
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I thank Mr. Tyndall for a fantastic report and for reflecting those voices so passionately and articulately. One thing that we missed from his opening statement not being read out which needs to be raised is the conclusion. He reflects the words of Charles, who felt like he is on a "scrapheap"; Francis, who feels forgotten about; Oliver, who contemplates suicide; and Liam, who describes his room as his world. We have discussions as politicians, officials and people doing jobs, but there are real people whose lives are moving along while we talk about action. They are front and centre. Mr. Tyndall has brought their voices to the table. This committee should ensure that it brings them to the table at some point. That would be valuable.

I am struck by so much but I will cut it down to two points. I hear Mr. Tyndall that there is no criticism of nursing homes. Their purpose is not to provide for the meaningful, full and engaged lives that the individuals at the centre of this report would wish to live. It would appear that it is manifestly inappropriate for them to continue in nursing homes where that is not their preference. That relates to the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act and the need for us to accelerate the commencement of the final phases of that Act as quickly as possible. I know that we are on a trajectory for June next year but that is too long and needs to happen sooner.

What screams out to me from Mr. Tyndall's opening statement is that we do not actually know. He is estimating. We are using fair deal metrics and such but we need an audit to know who is where and what their preferences are. I am concerned that a long time will elapse and perhaps more people will no longer be with us. When you hear the voices and the despair, as Mr. Tyndall said, that is powerful. It is urgent that we operate as quickly as we can.

In its report, the HSE states that in the meantime, work is advancing on a pilot project to provide accelerated and focused support for the transition of 18 people. If we have a guesstimate of 1,300 and we are only going to do a pilot project for 18, how long will it take? When will the learning be applied? When will the solutions, resolutions and commitment to act arise from that? Pilot projects are fantastic but something more radical is needed when you hear of the real plight of people in institutions in the here and now. I leave this committee to go into the Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to talk about past institutions. This is about the current institutionalisation of members of our community. We need to address it. What is the timeline for when we can effectively respond to the needs of the people at the heart of this report?