Dr. Frank Conaty:

I completely support everything the Ombudsman for Children has said about the assessment of needs and the Disability Act needing review, namely, that it should not be siloed in terms of looking at the EPSEN Act without looking at the Disability Act.

On the assessment of needs, if we look at the maloperation of the Act, if you want to call it that, and that is what was cited earlier, the waiting lists for assessment of needs, the non roll-out of assessments for adults, and the entire system not addressing the needs and rights of people in any fashion we consider appropriate or in any way that is compliant with conventions really does need to be addressed.

On a right to assessment versus a right to services, if we come back from the issue to a broader landscape in terms of where we are at in the realisation of rights for autistic people and disabled people, I hear what Deputy Tully is saying, but in the context of the optional protocol, we can no longer, as a society, stand aside and not recognise it is progressive realisation and that we do not need or require to be in a place or position to have all our ducks in a row while we have children and adults waiting for services, not just in general assessment of needs for health services but also accommodation and rights to housing. It is something we need to address and I ask the chief commissioner to talk about this matter. We have not addressed the economic, social and cultural rights in the convention and what that would mean in terms of the issues we are talking about today regarding services and what that would mean for us, as a country, in recognising those rights domestically. That is a significant issue that colours everything we are talking about as well.