Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this draft legislation and the issue today. I thank Deputy Canney for bringing the issue forward. As I indicated earlier, I am in the middle of a strategy meeting for another of the Government's national strategies, so I apologise that I was unable to hear the contributions of all Members. I heard Deputy Canney's contribution and those of Deputies Lowry, Verona Murphy and Berry. I might come back to some of the other strategies the Government is working on and implementing in terms of a model going forward.

In conjunction with the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, I support the Government's decision not to oppose this Private Members' Bill, the Autism Spectrum Disorder Bill 2017, but to propose a timed amendment whereby the Bill will receive Second Stage consideration in October 2022. As the Minister of State outlined, this will allow time for the development of the national autism innovation strategy, which the Minister of State is leading and is a commitment in the programme for Government. It also gives us the time to be held to account in our delivery of that autism innovation strategy. I agree with the Minister of State's comment that we need to give that strategy time to be fully drawn together and implemented. The element of accountability that so many Deputies spoke about is also important.

The autism innovation strategy will allow us as a government to respond to the challenges and barriers faced by people with autism more quickly than we would otherwise. We feel it will allow us to act more quickly than we could otherwise under an Act of the Oireachtas. As Minister, I recognise the very clear value of national action on autism spectrum disorders, as do my colleagues in government.

We recognise the very bespoke needs of persons with autism and, as Deputy Lowry said, the very individualised challenges that each person with autism faces. The issue we are flagging is that legislating for a specific disability carries particular risks in the context of advancing rights for all people with disabilities and delivering disability services in the round. We have to be aware of the complexities in this regard. Each category of disability or impairment creates specific and bespoke needs. Every person with a specific disability argues for special treatment and dedicated supports for themselves or for national strategies to address any one of these. In the approach we take we have to balance the correct and reasonable imperative to address bespoke barriers and challenges with recognising the universal nature of the issues and the universal rights provided for under the UNCRPD. Whatever we do, we all wish to avoid creating hierarchies of disabilities in the eyes of the State and the distortions that could arise.

We have some concerns about the appropriateness of using primary legislation as a vehicle to advance the aims of the Bill. Primary legislation is static. It can be altered, updated or reinterpreted only by using subsequent amending primary legislation. Of course, its rules of construal are quite narrow. It is based on common law principles. A high degree of specificity is required to achieve the intended policy effect and satisfy legal requirements. Any change can only be done through a subsequent lengthy legislative process. We very much feel that we need the national autism strategy to be dynamic and responsive. We want to avoid the exposure to risk that would undermine the ability of the strategy to be flexible and agile, to change with developing expert advice and to respond to prevailing circumstances and challenges.

We also need to act quickly. This came across from many Deputies in the House. The strategy needs to be implemented and acted on quickly. What are needed in such a context are policy-making structures that can respond quickly to the needs of the service users they are designed to support. This is a central element of the Government's response. We do have examples of structures that work well, that work in an agile fashion and that are responsive to changed needs of service users. I refer to the national disability inclusion strategy and the comprehensive employment strategy for persons with disabilities. They are whole-of-government platforms for policymaking. They have the flexibility to respond to changing conditions and definitions. They also are very much focused on achieving the core objectives set out in each of the strategies. There are accountability mechanisms built in to these strategies. There are oversight bodies, forums or committees that bring in the relevant Departments, stakeholders and people who have lived experience of the area.

I am in the middle of the quarterly forum meeting for the national LGBTI+ strategy. I have been discussing with NGOs and representatives from a range of Departments our successes in reaching each of the targets. We have a traffic light score whereby we look at and discuss them. The NGOs are able to ask why my Department is failing to deliver on X or why the Department of Health is failing to deliver on Y. There are good structures in place that provide accountability and bring in the people who are most expert in this area because of their NGO or community sector involvement in the area or who are individual service users.

The autism innovation strategy being developed by the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, will align with existing strategies, such as the comprehensive employment strategy and the disability inclusion strategy, as well as with the forthcoming UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities implementation plan, which the Department is also preparing. As the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, stated earlier, the Government in the programme for Government agreed to take action on autism and €100,000 was secured in this year's budget for the development of the autism innovation strategy. This is provided for in my Department's Vote.

I want to be absolutely clear that we as a Government are committed to supporting the needs of people with autism. We have committed ourselves to this course of action and we will do it in the most appropriate fashion and we will get it right. The Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, has already stated her intention to seek expressions of interest from organisations and persons interested in joining the working group to design the autism innovation strategy. We can also ensure these groups are represented in the oversight mechanisms we put in place. As I have said previously, this oversight is absolutely essential. The strategy will see collaborative working across the Government, while ensuring the lived experiences of people with autism inform and enhance in an holistic way how existing national frameworks support people with disabilities.

While I am here I will take the opportunity to recognise the leadership of the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, in this area. Her commitment to addressing these issues and being a fierce advocate for the needs of people with disability throughout the country is well known, in particular the needs of people with autism. I acknowledge this has been recognised by many Deputies in the House. We have created a new Department that brings responsibility for disability policy from the Department of Justice and responsibility for community disability services from the Department of Health. What we are looking to do is move the understanding of disability. Earlier, Deputy Canney said that we should stop looking at disability, and autism as one example, as a health issue. It is not a health issue. It is an issue that touches on all parts of a person's life. We need a Department that is designed in a way that recognises this and that can bring responses to all parts of a person's life and call in all relevant Government bodies and State agencies to be part of the responses. This is what we are seeking to do in the Department. I hope that within a year, we will be able to demonstrate through, as one example, the autism innovation strategy our steps towards achieving this unified and holistic response.

I thank Deputy Canney and his colleagues for tabling the Bill and prompting this important discussion today. The Government's decision is not to oppose the Bill but to propose a timed amendment to postpone Second Stage for consideration until next October. I welcome Deputy Canney's indication that he will continue to engage with us. The Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, and I are always open to engagement with any Member of the House on the issues that fall within our remit. Most importantly, I look forward to working with my colleague the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, on the design and implementation of the autism innovation strategy.

See this speech in context