Ivana Bacik (Independent)

May I give the last minute of my time to Senator Doherty? I welcome the Minister to the House. It gives me great pleasure to support Senator Norris's motion. It is a very important time for us to debate the Government's commitment to human rights. We have all acknowledged we face a deeply difficult economic period, but at a time like this we need to renew our commitment to human rights and ensure it is not undermined. The most vulnerable are being targeted disproportionately by the Government's economic package through imposing levies on even the lowest paid in the public service. We need to remind ourselves of the need to ensure a commitment to equality, human rights and social justice throughout Government policy at national and international levels. Senator Norris's motion powerfully reminds us of the many ways we need to ensure a commitment to human rights, nationally and internationally. He has brought a wide range of issues into the motion, which I do not hope to cover in detail, but I will pick out a small number of them.

The Government's amendment to this motion is disingenuous and misrepresents the reality of the cuts that have been imposed on different national bodies and on our overseas aid budget, which were announced yesterday and which undermine the stated or professed commitment to equality. There is a theme running through the Government's amendment and the words of the Minister and those on the other side of the House tonight, namely, rhetoric as opposed to reality. I welcome the very powerful pro-human rights rhetoric from the other side and the Minister, and it is very important. The problem arises where the reality does not match that rhetoric and we see swingeing cutbacks imposed on overseas aid budgets, the Equality Authority and the Irish Human Rights Commission, etc. We must then ask ourselves whether the rhetoric has any substance in reality.

There was an extraordinary use of language by some Senators on the other side, who spoke of the strengthening of the human rights institutions of this country, at a time when their budgets have been cut and the chief executive of the Equality Authority has had to resign because he says his authority can no longer function. It is extraordinary to listen to those on the Government side suggesting that equality and human rights measures and institutions have been strengthened in some way.