Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)

I support my colleagues' amendments, especially amendment No. 49 with which we are dealing. I also wish to speak on the two amendments I have co-sponsored, Nos. 55 and 59. Deputy Stanton has already outlined the reason for the amendments. We are seeking to incorporate the principle of a continuous review and the prioritisation of service provision because that is what the various groups sought so that, at the very least, the services most urgently required would be first delivered as the Bill does not guarantee as of right that people's needs will be addressed. The amendments fall short of enshrining the principle of progression in regard to needs that are not met. In the confines of what is being presented to us, we are trying to put in place a mechanism that will allow for prioritisation. My preference is for an unqualified right to an assessment of need. This will not happen, as outlined by the Minister of State in his response to this subject on Second and Committee Stages.

Amendments Nos. 55 and 59, which I have tabled, propose to delete the clauses in section 8(1)(b) and (c) which would permit an assessment officer not to inform a person with a disability of the purpose of an assessment interview and not to ensure that the person with a disability is given adequate information relating to the process and the results of the assessment. The rationale for this according to the Minister of State is that the provision of such information may, in some cases, be prejudicial to the applicant's mental health, well-being or emotional condition or inappropriate having regard to the age of the applicant or the nature of his or her disability.

The rationale behind the provisions is indicative of the Government's patronising medical approach to people with disability. This contrasts with the rights-based approach which the Opposition, the DLCG, the Human Rights Commission and many others who made submissions are advocating. The clauses we seek to delete are offensive and retrograde in the extreme. We cannot continue to regard people with disabilities as dependants to be protected and cared for. They are equal citizens; hence the selection of the title of the document, Equal Citizens, for which people had great hope. People with disabilities have the right to be informed of matters that concern them directly.

I accept the way information on the assessment is imparted may need to be customised to make it accessible, but it is fundamentally wrong to argue that any Health Service Executive employee should have discretionary power to withhold information concerning a person with a disability from that person because the employee is of the opinion that the person cannot take it. These provisions are a throwback to the bad old times and run counter to the principle of informed consent. They should be removed.

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