Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome that. I am making the point that I believe it could be revisited and re-evaluated. It is about having the political will to make it happen because it is something that has been identified not just by the Joint Committee on Justice and Equality but, as other colleagues have indicated, going back over at least a couple of decades. We need to have certainty on the issue, and if it is possible, it is better to do it than always to say there is a reason not to proceed.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, UNCRPD, was ratified in April 2018. It was also indicated to the Joint Committee on Justice and Equality in January of that year by the Minister of State, Deputy Finian McGrath, that there would be simultaneous ratification of the optional protocol, but that did not happen. It still has not happened. Having the UNCRPD without the optional protocol is like saying a person has certain rights but, unfortunately, he or she will not be able to enforce his or her entitlements as we are holding back on that.

So much needs to be done. I appeal to the Minister to heed the very thoughtful contributions of Members here today and to be mindful of the great hurt the people in the Visitors Gallery bear with them daily because of the position their loved ones are in.

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