Mary Henry (Independent)

I am pleased the Minister of State is taking this debate because he and I had such success with our previous debate. I would like to thank him for his help in restoring the clinical psychology course in Trinity College. The points he made that evening were very relevant when the whole matter was reconsidered.

This is an area which interests the Cathaoirleach who, as a former distinguished member of the Council of Europe, will be aware of the Oviedo Convention, which came into being in April 1997. This convention relates to the protection of human rights and the dignity of the human being with regard to the application of biology and medicine. It is described as the convention on human rights and biomedicine.

The area I particularly wish to address is that of the protocol which was added to the convention in Paris on 12 January 1998. Unfortunately, Ireland has not signed either the initial convention or the convention with the protocol. As developments in biology and medicine are racing ahead, we must be sure that progress in biology and medicine is used for the benefit of current and future generations and that respect for human beings, both as individuals and members of the human species, is never compromised. Misuse of biology and medicine could lead to acts which endanger human dignity.