Vol. 471 No. 3
2 Dr. Woods asked the Minister for Equality and Law Reform whether he has found a solution which will reconcile the legitimate interests of licensed vintners, hoteliers, shopowners and restaurateurs and the essential objective in the Equal Status Bill of outlawing discrimination on grounds of race, religion, class or ethnic origin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20702/96]
The enactment of equal status legislation is necessary to enable Ireland to ratify the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, 1965.
In preparing this Bill I have had a series of meetings with vintners and other service providers, including IBEC and the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland, and have invited proposals for safeguards to be included in the Bill which would meet their concerns. A number of constructive proposals have been made and these have been carefully considered in my Department. Discussions with the draftsman are ongoing. However, I intend to ensure that the Equal Status Bill, while meeting its essential objective of outlawing discrimination on specified grounds, will not harm the legitimate interests of vintners, hoteliers, shopowners and restaurateurs.
As the Minister is aware, there is great concern about the way in which the Bill will be implemented. This was heightened when in the Circuit Court in New Ross, County Wexford — this set a precedent — an award of £10,820 plus costs was made in favour of a person assaulted in a pub. To add insult to injury for the publican, the two people who carried out the assault were convicted and fined in the District Court. The pub owner stood accused and was told that he had a duty and a responsibility to break up the fracas and ensure that the people involved were removed. This frightened a great number of publicans in relation to the proposed legislation. They are worried about what might happen, especially in the lead-up to Christmas.
When does the Minister expect to be in a position to introduce the Bill? He mentioned that discussions are ongoing with the Attorney General's Office. This does not surprise me. I appreciate his difficulty in introducing anti-discrimination measures and, at the same time, maintaining the right of publicans, restaurateurs and those who run supermarkets to keep a good house.
As the Taoiseach informed the House recently, I hope to introduce the legislation before Christmas. I share the Deputy's concerns. We are dealing with two sets of equally important rights and both have validity. There are the rights of publicans and business owners as far as their premises are concerned and the rights of disadvantaged groups not to be discriminated against.
I have said many times that it is essential for Ireland to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination which has been ratified by over 140 countries worldwide, including all the other member states of the European Union. It cannot be ratified unless and until the equal status legislation is in place.
A number of helpful and constructive suggestions have been put to me by the two main vintners' associations. They are being looked at carefully and were furnished in a co-operative and constructive manner. I cannot say what the final format of the legislation will be, it is still in the course of finalisation. I look forward to a good discussion when it is introduced and I hope Deputies will agree I have struck a reasonable balance between the two sets of conflicting rights.
Will the Minister ensure that pub owners will be able to set the standards that they want to achieve when the legislation is in place? There is a variety of pubs, many of which maintain exceptional standards. Will the Minister ensure when the legislation is finalised by the draftsman that managers will be able to run a good public house, restaurant and supermarket?
The legislation will not interfere with anybody's rights to maintain the standards that he or she thinks are appropriate in his or her premises. We are talking about discrimination against a person on the grounds that he or she belongs to one of the categories of people who will be protected by the legislation as required by the UN Convention. We are talking about racism and its offshoots, not the rights of the owners of premises to set standards. This is acceptable as long as they are enforced on an equal basis across the board.
