Fiach MacConghail (Independent)

I attended the debate but did not speak. However, as the Seanad can do, it taught me an enormous amount about the issues facing a rights based approach to disability and Government policy. The debate was rich and informative, as was the quality of the contributions from all parties and all sides. There was no political point scoring either and the debate showed how the Seanad can deal with contentious and sensitive issue imaginatively. My lasting impression was of the contribution by the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, who was passionate, informed and on top of her brief. I believe in her commitment to resolve the issue of individualisation and I look forward to her progress on that.

One of the themes that came out of the debate was of the conclusions and recommendations of the Ryan report. We are coming to the third anniversary of its publication in May. In this regard, I highlight my concerns at the detention of children in St. Patrick's Institution in Dublin, which is a part of Mountjoy Prison. St. Patrick's Institution is a medium security prison where male offenders between the ages of 16 and 21 are detained. Although children under 16 are detained in the children's detention schools, boys over 16 continue to be detained in St. Patrick's, in an environment considered wholly inappropriate for their needs. This is an arbitrary distinction on the grounds of age and has no basis in law. On 15 June 2011, there were 41 boys aged 16 and 17, which is wholly inappropriate.

A briefing from the Irish Penal Reform Trust has called for an immediate end to the detention of children in St. Patrick's, as has the Ombudsman for Children. I understand the Ombudsman for Children is also responsible to the Oireachtas in this matter.