Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As someone who has been involved with Cope Foundation all my life, whose parents worked in Cope Foundation, and who has always been a supporter of young and old men and women with Down's syndrome, I know the joy they bring is one we should all celebrate. There is a duty on all of us to ensure they are included in society. It is also important that anyone having a discussion about men and women with Down's syndrome recognise that they are human beings who are well capable of thinking, articulating and advocating on their own behalf. We should celebrate them and rejoice with them. Equally, it is important they are not used as pawns in any debate that takes place in our society or in any campaign by anyone because they are not pawns to be put on billboards.They are men and women deserving of treatment-----