Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We are quickly running out of time to meet the timeframe of the end of 2016. The Bill has not been published yet, and the Minister does not have a definitive date for when it will be published. Is there a particular reason there is a delay in publishing it? Article 33 of the convention recommends that an independent monitoring body should be put in place to monitor progress. In the Irish context, there is no single umbrella body that enables us to have such a monitoring process in place. Have we made any progress in that regard? One of the other key recommendations was that disabled persons bodies - they are referred to as "DPOs" in the rapporteur's report - should be involved in the consultation process and in the drafting of the legislation. I wonder what organisations the Minister of State has been consulting as part of the process of drafting this legislation. Have all the other recommendations set out in the rapporteur's report been met? I know the end of 2016 is a very tight timeframe. I hope the Minister of State will meet it, but he will understand my scepticism in this regard.

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