Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have heard a lot this afternoon about mothers and I support the notion of removing some of the archaic language that is in our Constitution.

Shortly before my mother died, I visited her in Galway. The visit ended and while on my way home to Dublin, I thought about her and the impact she had on my life. I realised, by the time I got to Athlone, that I had never told her, so I turned around my vehicle and drove back to Galway. When I walked into her room she asked me what I was doing there. I said to her that on every important day of my life, she had been there and that I just wanted to say thanks. She got all emotional and I got all emotional and then I left. Why have I brought this into the conversation? My mother was never constrained by the Constitution. Her mother was never constrained by the Constitution. My father's mother was never constrained by the Constitution. My father's mother made her money renting swimming togs in Salthill and managed to build a house in one of the most prestigious places in Galway. My grandmother, when her husband died young, leased out the farm, opened up a guesthouse in County Mayo and reared a number of daughters, all of whom were industrious themselves as tailors, tailoresses, etc. They were never constrained. I had eight sisters, one of whom had Down's syndrome but the other seven all had professional or business lives; they were never constrained by the Constitution.

I have one difficulty with the new amendment being brought forward, the proposed Article 42B. It think is a good amendment until I hit the word "strive". What does the word "strive" mean? We try. That is really what it means. Senator Higgins has brought up the issue of citizens having to go to the courts to establish what something means. Citizens do not have the deep pockets the State has and we see in our appalling history how we dragged people through the courts who were dying. What are we going to say to the poor parents who have disabled children with constant care needs in their home? What are we going to say to those parents when we do not deliver for them? Are we going to say to them that we will strive and that we tried? Will we force them to go to the courts to prove that we did not try? The word "strive" in that particular amendment means absolutely nothing. The Minister, in his presentation here today, spoke about words having meaning. Putting in the word "strive" gives the State an opt-out. It gives the State the ability to say it tried, it was constrained by the resources and did not have the resources. We hear that every day of the week. Most of the speakers today have been talking about the disabled and how they have been treated appallingly by this country and by countless Governments down through the years but, sure, they strived to do their best. The word "strive" is too ambiguous. It is, as the Minister said in his speech, wishy-washy or symbolic. It is of no value whatsoever.

I understand that what we are talking about here is the extension of the area of care beyond the mother to the family. Senator Clonan spoke about this earlier today but to a certain degree, are we saying that when the parents of that child pass away - an issue Senator Sherlock has just talked about - we are expecting that some sibling will take over the reins and continue to look after somebody who is severely disabled? I am really shocked that Family Carers Ireland has supported this because it gives the State the ability to say, "Sure, we tried. We made an attempt." As the person who feels the State did not try or make an attempt, where do I have to go? I have to go to the courts and get a judicial review to establish whether the State did or did not try. I have to go through all the processes of proving the State did not do the job it meant to do.

The measure is good and proposes a good change to the Constitution. If the Minister takes the word "strive" out of it then I will canvass for it but leave the word in, and I will canvass for a "No" vote. The Minister is a decent guy who tries to push things through as best he can but the word "strive" diminishes the entire amendment to the Constitution.