Adjournment Debate - 18th November 2008

Adjournment Debate – 18th November 2008

Senator David Norris: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and congratulate him
on his recent happy news.
It is only a few weeks since the Minister for Finance, Deputy Brian Lenihan, introduced his
first budget. The financial climate both nationally and internationally is bleak and one understands
the necessity for cutbacks. Some of the measures outlined were insensitive, such as the
removal of the universal entitlement to medical cards for the over 70s and the universal 1%
levy. These have been remedied. However, by far the most sinister cuts were those whose
impact was not immediately obvious. I refer to the deliberate and specific hobbling of virtually
every agency in the State representing the marginalised and disadvantaged. The Equality Authority,
the Combat Poverty Agency, the Irish Human Rights Commission and others have been
selectively targeted and victimised. In some cases, there is no saving in so doing. In others, the
savings are minimal but the very efficiency and relevance of these agencies has been effectively
destroyed. This is the dagger under the cloak. Having reviewed the situation in detail, I have
no doubt these groups are being punished because they were troublesome to the Government
and, in particular, because they criticised the operation of Departments.
This whole sorry business calls into question the Government’s commitment to equal rights
for the citizens of this State and human rights in general. The Combat Poverty Agency has
been abolished in circumstances where there can be no question whatever that there will be a
massive increase in poverty levels in this State. In these conditions, the agency should have been
strengthened. Instead of acting to protect the poor and the disadvantaged, the Government has
ensured they will be left virtually powerless. Moreover, the absorption of the lifeless corpse of
the Combat Poverty Agency into the office for social inclusion, which effectively means its
absorption into the Department of Social and Family Affairs, means it will lose its critical
independent aspect. There is no doubt in my mind this was the specific intention of the
Government.
The Government must take several steps as a minimum requirement. The board of the
Combat Poverty Agency must remain in place until the roles, remit and structures of a new
and strengthened division is agreed and the board’s responsibilities as an employer are satisfactorily
met. The Minister must give an undertaking for a consultation process with the social
partners and other key stakeholders on the formation of a new division. There must be an
explicit focus on poverty in the new division. It must be empowered to undertake and publish
research and policy analysis, support and evaluate programmes and initiatives to reduce and
eliminate poverty, and promote an understanding of poverty and ways to tackle and build
social inclusion.
A parallel and even more swingeing attack has been made on the Equality Authority. The
overall departmental cut was 4% as against 2008. However, the budget of the Equality Authority
has been slashed by a massive 43%. Moreover, it is unique in being targeted for further
participation in the discredited decentralisation programme. Fifteen staff are already situated
in Roscrea, but many of these are not original members of the Equality Authority. In order to
get the numbers right, people were reallocated within Departments. The same is likely to
happen with the additional 15. There will be 30 people in Roscrea with little or no professional
acquaintance with the equality legislation in a building that does not have disabled access.
This is a disgraceful farce and one that is likely to lead to wastage and inefficiency instead of
budget savings.
Why is this happening? Again, this is an agency that has been critical of the Government.
The figures are revealing. Departments, State agencies, local authorities and educational institutions
made up 54% of the case files under the Equal Status Act in 2005, 60% in 2006 and
69% in 2007. There is no question that the Equality Authority lived up to its responsibility to
be a critical voice. For this reason it has been neutered. The Equality Authority itself has
concluded that budget 2009, if fully implemented, may render it unable fully or effectively
to carry out the full range of its core functions under the equality legislation and relevant
EU directives.
In the past, the Government has ignored or treated with contempt decisions made by the
Equality Authority with which it was uncomfortable. A classic example is in the case of a
same-sex couple who applied for equal transport rights with opposite-sex couples, married or
unmarried, as granted by a particular firm. The firm’s refusal to make this provision was found
to be a gross discrimination and violation of the Equality Act. The Government, however,
acted not to correct this discrimination but to copperfasten it by introducing legislation to
redefine the word “spouse” in order to negate the rights of same sex couples.
Also under attack is the Irish Human Rights Commission. This is a quite astonishing piece
of political brigandage. The Irish Human Rights Commission was established in concert with
the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. It was intended to be in direct tandem with and
parallel to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. By acting in the manner it acted,
the Government has violated all its commitments under this Agreement and effectively
rendered the Human Rights Commission incapable of carrying out its remit.
Like the Equality Authority, the Human Rights Commission has been subject to cuts that
are quite disproportionate when viewed in the light of other cuts even within the Department
of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. Under these cuts the Human Rights Commission will be
unable to pay staff, salaries and basic operational costs. In a statement the Commission said to
the press that, “A cut of the scale proposed would leave the Irish Human Rights Commission
completely unable to perform its function. It would put its survival in doubt.” In July of this
year the United Nations explicitly called on the Government to strengthen the independence
and capacity of the IHRC by giving it adequate and sufficient resources to do its job properly
for the Irish people. Look at how the Government responded. The work of the commission is
critical, especially during this difficult financial time. The Government’s action is also in
violation of the expressed wish of the people of Ireland, North and South, who gave their full
backing to the Good Friday Agreement under which the Human Rights Commission was
established.
In October, I attended the headquarters of the Irish Human Rights Commission in central
Dublin for the launch of its report. The chairman at that meeting was optimistic and, in fact,
was calling for further work to be entrusted to the Human Rights Commission. This indeed
may be a way for the Government to allow the Human Rights Commission to survive by
providing it with extra work in a clear example of a productivity agreement. The chairman on
that occasion expressed the desire that the commission should be used by the Government to
human rights proof proposed legislation. This would be valuable, helpful and an efficient use
of the commission. There is also a role for the commission to play in monitoring international
covenants, conventions and agreements such as the disability convention and the convention
on torture. Additional funding could be afforded in return for work undertaken in this area,
thus guaranteeing the survival of this important body.
This country is not unique in facing the economic crisis. However, to our shame, it is unique
in specifically and savagely targeting those bodies which protect the rights of the weakest
members of society. I bring to the Minister’s attention the opening paragraph of a statement
issued in Paris on 16 November, two days ago, at the European Disability Forum, which states:
The European Disability Forum which is the voice of more than fifty million European
people with disabilities, calls on the European Council, Commission and Parliament and
other European institutions and all the Governments of Europe to ensure disabled people
and their families do not pay for the world wide economic crisis by the reduction in their
income, benefits, employment opportunities or in cuts in support to our representative organisations.
It remains to be seen whether this Government has the moral capacity to respond positively
to that call.


Senator David Norris: I am sorry a decent Minister of State has been entrusted with such a
squalid and disgraceful reply, which is riddled with intellectual holes. The Minister of State
said civil servants are accustomed to changes of role within an organisation. That is a most
extraordinary insult to the professionalism and expertise of such people. I have never heard
anything like it. Are they dumbbells that can be switched around willy-nilly all over the place?
Is there no professional expertise? Have they no qualifications? That is plain nonsense. I do
not believe this is the Minister of State’s opinion. I believe this is some of the apparatchiks
sticking the knife into organisations which have raised serious questions. With regard to the
anti-ageing measures, the recipients are a very easy target and it is a classic tactic. It would be
interesting news for Senator Mary White of the Minister of State’s own party. These issues, to
adapt Mr. Gerry Adams, will not go away, you know. There are those of us, not only on the
Opposition side of the House, committed to ensuring the Government does not get away with
this, the nastiest trick of all, and especially cutbacks in the public relations area. I remember,
as possibly does the Minister of State, as I believe he was in the House at that time, when a
previous administration cut back on citizens’ information services. The reason behind this was
that the Government said people already had rights, but it destroyed their capacity to exercise
those rights.
With regard to savings on buildings, on numerous occasions in the past year I informed the
House of buildings throughout the city which were empty, but nothing was done about it. The
Government is not fooling anybody and it is a shame that it should behave in this way, attacking
the most vulnerable people in our society. It will come back to haunt this Government.
Deputy Billy Kelleher: I will bring the Senator’s views to the Minister.
Senator David Norris: I would be very grateful if the Minister of State would do so.
Senator David Norris: I am pleased to hear the Minister will meet these organisations, but I
do not accept the point with regard to the professionalism of people and moving them around,
and neither do the bodies concerned. They know expertise is picked up in this way. That
assertion does not work. It might have a small chance of working had we not seen in the case
of the Equality Authority the way in which the Government deliberately turned its face against
the decisions of the body, established by it, and reversed that body’s decisions. It was an
astonishing volte-face.