Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I commend the Minister and Minister of State on bringing forward this very important legislation. I am sure they would agree it is embarrassing that in Ireland today, people still have to make applications under the Lunacy Regulation (Ireland) Act 1871. As Deputy Berry indicated a few moments ago, that legislation is 150 years old. Notwithstanding the archaic language within that legislation, if people find themselves in a situation where a loved one or close family member requires protection, they still have to make an application under the wardship system. Every person who is aware of or interested in this issue should have it at the forefront of their mind. As we now live in a much healthier society and people are living longer, it is important that we prepare for the lengthier lives of those close to us.

The most important thing to do is ensure those individuals, before they lose capacity or get too elderly, put in place a power of attorney. That way, if they lose their capacity, persons close to them or persons they trust will be in a position to make important decisions on their behalf for the remaining years of their lives. Unfortunately, on many occasions, that is not done. As a result, family members find themselves in a situation where they cannot gain access to a mother's or grandmother's bank account in order to pay for the upkeep of that mother or grandmother, and they cannot make any decisions in respect of the care or medical treatment of that elderly person because they do not have the appropriate legal responsibility for them. If they find themselves in that unfortunate position, the only option available to them is to go through the lengthy, costly and unfortunately necessary process of making an application to the High Court seeking to have the person lacking capacity made a ward of court. This legislation is very welcome as it will take us away from that old and archaic system.

Under the legislation that was enacted in 2015 - some seven years ago - but has not been commenced, there will have to be a large number of applications made to the court in respect of people who are at present under the wardship system. Under section 54 of the 2015 Act, which has not yet been commenced, there is a requirement that the wardship court shall, within three years of the date of commencement of that part of the Act, make a declaration under section 55(1) in respect of a ward who is 18 years or older by that date. As I am sure the Minister is aware, that will give rise to a significant amount of work in the courts, predominately within the High Court. I do not have exact numbers for how many wardships there are at present but I know from work I did on the justice committee of the previous Dáil that as of 2015 there were approximately 2,000 wards in Ireland and since then we have added more than 2,000 more. Of course, some of those individuals will have died and so the numbers will not be at that full level but a very large number of applications will certainly have to be made under section 54 of the 2015 Act when it comes into operation. The Minister needs to take into account how to deal with that.

The courts need resources in order to ensure these important applications, which require very significant evidence to be put before the court, are considered carefully by it. I ask the Minister to engage with the Attorney General to determine how those lists will be dealt with because they will take up a huge amount of court time. However, that is not the primary issue. The primary issue is that the people whose applications are being made, or on whose behalf applications are being made, need to have those applications dealt with promptly. The last thing we want is for them to be delayed because of delays in the court system. At present people still have to go through an unusual application. They have to get affidavit evidence and the application is made to the president of the High Court. It is a very confusing system for the families making the application because it is alien to them and they do not feel they have an understanding of it.

One of the trends of modern legislation is that we delegate away from the courts issues in respect of decision-making matters that the courts previously held responsibility for. It is welcome that we are going to have this statutory body that will make important decisions on behalf of people who lack capacity. I also welcome the other aspects of the legislation which ensure the rights of people with disabilities are fully recognised. The Minister has added on to this legislation a provision for the selection of jurors under the Juries Act 1976. People will be able to play their role on juries notwithstanding the fact that they are deaf. If they are able to comprehend evidence with the assistance of a person proficient in sign language, there is no reason they should not be entitled to serve their civic function by being a member of a jury. The legislation also seeks to repeal section 41(i) of the Electoral Act 1992 to remove the bar on a person of unsound mind being a Member of Dáil Éireann. This is important as it takes away language which, although not as archaic as the 19th century language of the lunatic, is still not appropriate to have on our Statute Book. We have to move ourselves away from such judgment-heavy language.

I commend both the Minister and Minister of State on the legislation. We need to bring to this legislation the energy they have brought to date. It is unacceptable not only that section 15 of the 1871 legislation is still in place but that the Houses of the Oireachtas passed legislation in 2015 that has still not been commenced. We should not have to wait seven years before legislation is commenced. Due to that delay, there is now a requirement to amend parts of that legislation.

I urge the Minister to ensure he can get the Bill before committee as quickly as possible and, at the same time, try to ensure that when we get it enacted and commenced, we will have an efficient system of having those applications dealt with by the court.

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