Brian Hayes (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Fahey, and his officials to the House. I thank him for staying for the Second Stage contributions from all sides of the House. I am aware of the effort devoted to this Bill in the other House by Deputy Stanton and other Deputies and the Minister of State.

To take up Senator Leyden's challenge, I do not think it is a question of one Bill competing against another, but of getting it right this time. As other speakers have said, this Bill has been eight years in gestation. This House now has an opportunity to deal with it as conclusively as possible and to ensure the best possible deal for disabled people in this country.

The Fine Gael spokesperson, Senator Terry, will circulate 100 amendments on Committee Stage and realistically, much of the work will be done then. As the Minister of State is a former Senator, he will be aware that Committee Stage in the Seanad is very different to Committee Stage in the other House, primarily because it is held as a plenary session whereas Committee Stage in the Dáil is made up of the principal spokespersons and the Minister.

This House is a great fount of wisdom on this issue. Some Members have served time on health boards and are long-standing constituency politicians. Committee Stage will take place in two weeks' time and will provide an opportunity to tease out many of these issues in greater detail. The Minister of State will be aware of the long-standing tradition in this House that where ideas are brought forward on Committee Stage, the Government will consider them. He has already mooted his willingness to do so which is to be welcomed.

Many of the critical amendments proposed in the other House were not accepted by the Government so I hope it will use this opportunity to have another look at this Bill in order to improve it to ensure we all support it. It is not a case that we wish to vote against the Bill but we are forced into doing so because of the caveats that currently exist in the legislation.

Senator Leyden referred to whether or not the President should send this Bill to the Supreme Court, but this is a failure on our part to take responsibility for legislation. The President has the right to do that but it is also clear in the Constitution that the Oireachtas cannot enact legislation which it regards as repugnant to the Constitution. The reading of Bunreacht na hÉireann and case law leads to the conclusion that the Houses of the Oireachtas cannot pass a Bill which they regard as being repugnant to the Constitution. The right of access to the courts in Article 34.1 of the Constitution was vindicated in the 1966 case, Macauley v. the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs. Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights enshrines the right of access to the courts within a reasonable timeframe.

If this House is of the view that this Bill puts limits on the two key rights of access to the courts and a reasonable timeframe within which the courts can determine matters, we are duty bound to oppose the Bill and not leave it to the President to refer the Bill to the Supreme Court. I ask the Government to consider this matter between now and Committee Stage. Both the Department of the Taoiseach and the Minister of State's Department are continuing to discuss these matters with the lobby groups. This House is genuinely concerned to make the best possible use of its time to ensure the Bill is a framework for the rights of disabled people.

Last Thursday a large group from all over the country took to the streets on the day the Bill was being voted on in the Dáil. This does not bode well for the manner in which the Government has presented this matter. This Bill is the third separate opportunity for a legislative initiative which the Government has had in the past four years. It has been dealt with by three different Ministers. There is still a significant body of opinion within those who represent people with disabilities that this Bill does not contain the legislative provision required which it can support. I take my lead in this area from people who have a disability or who represent people with disabilities. As Senator Ryan said, for people who do not have a disability or are not close to someone who has, we must seriously consider the genuine concerns of people about this Bill. We must make the best possible fist of it.

What is the automatic guaranteed legal right that must be furnished to a person where a child born to that person presents with some form of disability? We are all aware of cases where a child is born with a clear disability. The first question the parents will ask is, "What next? "Whatare the life expectations and chances for my child?"