Written answers

Wednesday, 2 December 2015

Department of Justice and Equality

UN Conventions Ratification

Photo of Colm KeaveneyColm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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100. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the legislative steps that need to be taken in order to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities; the time frame for this; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42334/15]

Photo of Aodhán Ó RíordáinAodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour)
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The Deputy's Question is comprehensively answered in the roadmap to Ireland’s ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which details the legislative changes to be undertaken to enable Ireland to ratify the Convention, along with the estimated timeframe involved and a clear and unambiguous deadline for ratification by end-2016. The roadmap was published on 21 October 2015. As announced at that time, the Government has inter aliaapproved the drafting of the Equality/Disability (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill to make a range of miscellaneous amendments to statute law necessary to enable ratification. Work on the General Scheme of this Bill is underway, with a view to submission to Government very soon.

The Roadmap to Ratification is available on my Department’s website. It sets out the considerable work currently underway to deal with outstanding barriers to Ireland’s ratification, including legislation governing decision-making capacity, mental health legislation, the law governing the administration of electro-convulsive therapy (ECT), amendments to the criminal law, and the removal of archaic and offensive references across the statue book to persons being “of unsound mind”. Other issues to be addressed include the provision of reasonable accommodation, and ensuring that the Convention’s requirements are met in relation to deprivation of liberty. These, along with other necessary amendments, will be addressed in the Equality/Disability (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill.

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