David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I commend Deputy Mattie McGrath for tabling this Bill and using Private Members' time to move it. I am making this contribution on behalf of Deputy Ó Caoláin, who is unable to be here. I am disappointed the Government is unable at least to support the Bill to Committee Stage. Very often, the Government cites errors in a Bill which, as we know, can quite easily be rectified on Committee Stage. This is why we take Bills in various Stages, so that we can correct and iron out any difficulties that might be there. I accept what the Minister said as there has been movement in some of the areas in terms of the Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act that has improved the situation but this Bill would complement all of that and should have been supported to at least Committee Stage so that we could argue and tease out the difficulties the Minister says are in the Bill.

My party fully supports the intent of the Bill and its progress to the next Stage. The abuse, financial or otherwise, of our elder citizens or other vulnerable people is beneath contempt. It is unfortunate and very worrying that this is becoming more prevalent. I listened with intent as Deputy Mattie McGrath spoke about the statistics and facts behind all of this. It is very troubling that an awful lot of this abuse comes from family members such as sons and daughters. It is also worrying to hear that a high number of these incidents happen in service settings, which means that they also happen in State agencies and organisations tasked with looking after people. Deputy Mattie McGrath talked about an edition of "Prime Time" that will air this evening. A number of editions of "Prime Time" have shown problems in this area over the past number of years. We have seen it not just in this area but in the childcare sector and nursing homes. Having said that, it must be said that the vast majority of people in care service settings receive very good care. I am sure Deputy Mattie McGrath would acknowledge that as well but where there is a problem, it must be dealt with decisively and robustly when it comes to very vulnerable people who are exposed.

It is not pleasant to have to acknowledge in the Dáil that the circumstances of this abuse sometimes originate within families. It does not give us any pleasure to say that but it is a reality. In acknowledging that, we must do much more and improve in whatever areas we can to ensure we reduce these types of incidents and make sure those responsible for this disgusting behaviour are held to account. We have a duty of care as legislators and as a society to our most vulnerable citizens. We must protect them from this abuse. I have acknowledged some advances by Government that have been made in recent times since Deputy Mattie McGrath moved his Bill in 2015 that give greater protections to older and vulnerable people who may be at risk of these types of incidents but I still think there is merit in the Bill, that we can add value to what has been done and that we can always improve on the circumstances.

It is important that we commit as much resources as possible to highlight this issue further. One of the things this Bill does is give us an opportunity to talk about these issues and have a conversation that perhaps we do not always have. More resources to highlight the issue further and make people more aware of its prevalence are also important. The more we talk about it, the more people become aware of it and the more difficult it might be for people to behave in an inappropriate way. I would also encourage more resources for a particular campaign where An Garda Síochána community officers can use outreach with regard to senior citizen advocacy groups and speak directly to them in an educational capacity to enable them to recognise the warning signs. If we can anticipate and learn from previous experiences and anticipate potential warning signs or flags raised so that all of those involved from law enforcement to people who work in the service settings to other family members can see and be aware of the warning signs, that is obviously to the good. This is why putting more resources into highlighting these issues and having these types of debates plays a very important part.

I know other people want to speak.

I contributing to this debate on behalf of Teachta Ó Caoláin who asked me to say he supports the Bill and wants to commend Teachta Mattie McGrath on bringing it forward. We support the intention of the Bill. As with all these Bills, there are imperfections. It is very difficult for members of the Opposition to craft Bills. We do not have the army of civil servants Ministers have when they are crafting Bills. We have various Stages in the Dáil to correct and perfect Bills where there are imperfections. I do not like the habit of knocking back Bills just because we see some errors in them. I am sure the author of the Bill would be more than willing to accommodate and work with Government and Opposition to improve the Bill. I have been in this position and it is unfair to people who introduce Bills. It is not the way we should deal with Private Members' Bills. Many motions are brought forward as Private Members' business but when a Bill is brought forward, we should give it due recognition and at least go to Committee Stage. Then we can decide whether there is merit in taking it further. I commend the author of this Bill on allowing us the opportunity to discuss this very important topic.

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