Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)

To that end, amendment No. 1 is an attempt to try to introduce a better definition in the Bill. I am concerned, however, about the very limited movement that has been made by the Government to deliver on rights. I am concerned that organisations are walking away from the Bill, so to speak. I am concerned that the Minister for Finance threw money at disability organisations in the budget last December in an attempt to win the consent of those organisations but it is not working. I am disturbed that the attempt to indulge in pork-barrel politics last December has led to divisions within the ranks of those organisations working in the area of disability.

The rights that disability groups sought should not be watered down to a right merely to an independent assessment. People with disabilities must be entitled to the same civil and human rights as others. It is not rocket science. The Americans With Disabilities Act was signed by President George Bush senior in 1990. That law mandated that local, state and federal Government buildings and programmes be accessible to employees and people using the services, that businesses with more than 15 persons make reasonable accommodations for disabled workers and that public accommodation such as restaurants and shops make reasonable modifications to provide access for disabled members of the public.

It seems curious that George Bush senior, hardly a paragon in the defence of human rights, made more provisions 15 years ago in the United States than the Irish Government is prepared to make today. This Bill should be about accessibility, mobility and ability, and should provide for obligations and participation. Most of all it should provide rights and I am concerned the Minister of State has not gone the extra mile to deliver that.

I hope in the debate which starts with these fundamental amendments on how we define the Bill he goes that extra mile. While I am keen to participate fully in the discussion on the amendments it is only possible to do so if we see some sign of a commitment from the Minister of State to engage, take on and proceed with some of the amendments. I hope he tries to provide some olive branch to those who sincerely wish to see those rights delivered on and vindicated within the Bill.

I proceed to this Stage of the Bill with a heavy heart because I have not seen much sign of a thawing from the Government side. We all have met representatives of organisations concerned about this Bill. The more one meets them the more one realises this is not about delivering a charitable act of compassion for a group in society. It is about allowing those groups of people and individuals to participate freely in society and have rights delivered. Surely that can be done in the Ireland of 2005.

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