Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to get the opportunity to talk about the important Bill before us. My only worry is the length of time allowed to put in amendments. Even though the Bill has been discussed for many years it is now upon us and we must deal with it. We will do so but it is only as the Bill progresses through these Houses and when we see the amendments that we will make the ultimate decisions about what the Bill will look like when the work is completed.

As I said, the changes the Bill proposes to bring about have been discussed for many years. The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) 2015 Act aimed to introduce a new protection regime and new legal framework for supported decision-making for vulnerable adults with a rights-based approach to decision-making capacity. We all know people, even young people, for whom something goes wrong with the most important part of them, which is the top shelf. Some may have an accident, elderly people may have a stroke and there is also those who have dementia.

I know of one case where dementia set in within the space of two weeks. Everything was left up in a heap for that family. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae referred to the power of attorney, but who thinks of doing that? People do not think of giving somebody the power of attorney when they go to make a will. There is much talk about making wills and we have been getting advice about that for years, but seldom have we heard of people being advised to give power of attorney to a family member or a friend in case some of these life-changing illnesses occur.

There are instances where, due to stroke or dementia, a farmer is in a nursing home. He does not know where he is, and he could live there for four, six, eight or even in some cases 11 years. The farm payments to keep the farm going are jeopardised, as are the grants and so forth that are depended on to put food on the table. The cattle cannot be sold. The herd number and the whole lot are up in a heap. It is very important that this Bill emphasises that the power of attorney should be availed of by people of all ages, but especially after mid-life. We all know there are accidents of every type on the road. The soundest people end up in a very bad way and they leave things for the family in a bad way too.

Under this amendment Bill, the current substituted decision-making under wardship will be replaced by assisted decision-making and will be based on an adult's ability to make a specific decision at a specific time. Then there are cases where people get better. As the saying goes, they come back from a very bad state, so we must cater for that as well and ensure that people can take back control of their own business if they recover. I know of somebody who was unconscious and given over for dead for more than 12 months. That person has woken up. He is a young fellow of 21 or 22 years of age who was hit by a car. He woke up the other day and his first words were: "I love you, Mam". We must cater for those types of decisions as well to ensure that those people get their rights.

We will all play our part and table amendments if we see they are needed. We will support or oppose amendments as they are dealt with. We propose to work with the Minister of State.

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