Sheila Terry (Fine Gael)

I will be happy when the Government parties accept this amendment, as I am sure they will. The amendment seeks to ensure that this legislation complies with other legislation that is already in place. I want to ensure that nothing in this Bill affects or diminishes the rights and protections contained in Equal Status Acts, the European Convention of Human Rights Act 2003 and the Employment Equality Acts. We all need to accept the ideals which underpin such legislation, which was passed by the Oireachtas. Nothing in this Bill should diminish the rights and protections afforded to people with disabilities under the Acts I have mentioned. The Minister of State did not answer the question I asked earlier about minimum rates of pay. Perhaps I did not ask it in the correct context. An amendment was made to the Equal Status Acts to ensure that public and private sector workers with disabilities are entitled to a rate of pay that is not less than the minimum wage. That amendment ensures that the rights of such people under the Equal Status Acts and other Acts are upheld rather than diminished.