Dr. Ciara Fitzpatrick:

Absolutely. So many states have ratified human rights instruments such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights but it would be a huge step forward to integrate these into our domestic legislation and be bound by them. The Human Rights Act in the UK bears that out to some degree in terms of ensuring that people can challenge the injustice they have faced on the basis of their human rights. We are aware that this ability is under threat again and see a cautious approach from the Judiciary. Sometimes the reality is not the same as what theory suggests, but the mechanism in question is a very concrete way of ensuring people understand what their rights are and have justiciable ways of enforcing them if they are in any way eroded or challenged. The hallmark of a significantly progressive system would be the integration of the key, core and fundamental right to social security in any future legislation born in a new Ireland.