David Norris (Independent)

I commend Senators Mary Ann O'Brien and O'Donnell on their passionate advocacy of one of the most important issues facing this country. It is notable that they were among the imaginative nominations by the Taoiseach but they have the courage to speak out independently. Nothing could offer greater justification for the continuation of this Seanad in whatever form it may take.

I was moved by the story of the boy in Tipperary, although I have heard it previously. It is a disgrace that his parents lost their home, particularly given that we approach the 100th anniversary of 1916. I will not rehearse those phrases.

People with disabilities have every right to be angry. I have also worked with Inclusion Ireland, which I salute as a remarkable organisation. I was horrified to learn that the Lunacy Act is still in force. I ask the Minister of State to give her commitment that she will remove that Act from the Statute Book. Such language is offensive to these people. I recall a period when we were going through legislation to remove that kind of language. Let us make a commitment on this tonight if we do nothing else.

I regret there are two amendments. I do not know why they were tabled because it should be obvious that the motion is justified. People with disabilities want the equality which the foundation documents of this Republic promised. They do not want reliance on charity. They want what they are entitled to, which is the opportunity to live independently. The Minister promised a mental capacity Bill. I would like to know where it is, how it is going, when we will get it, and whether it will be introduced through this House. We have people here who have demonstrated they are absolutely qualified to deal with it. It is wonderful that people such as Senator O'Brien and her husband, in the Jack and Jill foundation, have done this remarkable work. They should not have to do it. They were placed in that situation, but they have done it.

I remember, when some of the earlier legislation was being discussed, my then colleague Senator Joe O'Toole and I fought against another Government to achieve rights-based legislation, but we could not. Even in those good days, the justification was the economy. If we wait for the economy to be right, we will never do it. One of the proudest and most positive moments of my life was being asked to present an award at the O2 Ability Awards - not disability awards. So many employers spoke there about how wonderful their employees who were disabled in one way or another were because of their immense commitment to the job. That is what makes it so mean and so awful that they are excluded from this job access programme. They should be encouraged rather than stymied, because it is good for their mental welfare, it is good for the education of the people who work with them, and it is good for business. Businesses are run by pretty hard-headed people. Senator Quinn was one of the major supporters and he received an award that night. He is a hard-headed businessman - a decent man, but a hard-headed businessman. People like that would not employ people with disabilities if they did not get damned good value out of them, and we in Seanad Éireann must assist in every way we possibly can.

I listened in horror to a story on the radio in the last couple of days. A young woman who had a progressive illness that resulted in disability had lost her medical card through a kind of computer error, and she was told that despite this, she would have to go back to the start and apply for another one. She did not have her drugs so she was confined to bed unnecessarily. She had to go through the rigmarole of applying for another card and was told it would take six months. Can this not be short-circuited? Can we not support people with disabilities?