Vol. 534 No. 5
10 Ms O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if it is intended to bring forward an amendment to the Constitution to outlaw discrimination in the next tranche of constitutional amendments to be put to the people in summer 2001; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10994/01]
The Government has already indicated its intention to bring four issues before the electorate for possible constitutional amendment during the summer. The issues are the Treaty of Nice, the International Criminal Court, judicial oversight and/or impeachment and the removal of references to the death penalty.
An amendment to the Constitution in the area of non-discrimination will be considered at a later stage. The Deputy will know that the Constitutional Review Group recommended amendment of Article 40.1 of the Constitution to pro vide for equality and non-discrimination. The group recommended the following wording in regard to discrimination:
No person shall be unfairly discriminated against, directly or indirectly, on any ground such as sex, race, age, disability, sexual orientation, colour, language, culture, religion, political or other opinion, national, social or ethnic origin, membership of the travelling community, property, birth or status.
The recommendations of the Constitutional Review Group are being dealt with by the All-Party Committee on the Constitution. It is understood that, on completion of its work in regard to the recommendations relating to the institutions of State, the committee proposes to deal with the area of fundamental rights and will consider the equality amendment in the context of this tranche of proposals.
The information sought was given before to the Deputy as recently as 28 March 2001. The information was given in the context of another parliamentary question asked by the Deputy on that date, by way of clarification, arising from a supplementary question to the Taoiseach made by the Deputy during Taoiseach's Question Time on 7 March 2001.
I thank the Minister of State for her reply. I am pursuing this question because I am finding it difficult to secure clarity as to when we can expect the two referenda affecting people with disabilities on social and economic rights and anti-discrimination to be held. What method is being used by the Government in terms of prioritising the issues which will be put to the people in referenda? Can the Minister of State give me any idea of the timescale within which we can expect the referenda to be held? In the context of the proposed disabilities Bill, has the Government obtained legal advice and engaged in legal consultation to ascertain whether the outstanding matters with regard to the Constitution which the Commission on the Status of People with Disabilities recommended be dealt with are an obstacle to the drafting of the legislation?
Such matters are not an obstacle. There are no difficulties in the drafting of the legislation. The matter of the timeframe is being dealt with by the all-party committee on the Constitution which will look at the area of fundamental rights, including the equality amendment to which I referred, recommended by the Constitution Review Group, that Article 40.1 be amended. I have given the wording to the Deputy. There are no proposals to advance constitutional amendments in areas beyond those identified by the Constitution Review Group in its report which has been referred to the all-party committee on the Constitution for debate. The committee will debate the wording to be brought forward.
I accept that we are speaking about two different amendments and that the Minister of State is referring to the amendment dealing with anti-discrimination. I put it to her that in the debates on the Employment Equality Act and the Equal Status Act clear constitutional difficulties were identified, specifically with regard to the rights of people with disabilities, that accommodation rights, in particular, would present an obstacle in extending the rights of such people. Clearly, this issue caused problems for the legislation in question. Will it not also cause a problem when we come to deal with legislation dealing specifically with people with disabilities?
The directive on equal treatment in employment and occupation adopted in November 2000 imposed an obligation on employers to provide reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities unless such measures would impose a disproportionate burden on them. This will mean, in effect, that when the directive is given effect in Ireland the ceiling of nominal cost in the Employment Equality Act will no longer apply. It is important to note that the constitutional difficulties we experienced in the early part of 1997 in the initial drafting of the legislation have been overcome. The legislation was redrafted and the two Bills in question have been passed by both Houses.
The problem is that they are weaker than the original legislation.
Will the Deputy, please, allow the Minister of State to conclude?
It is important to note that the earlier difficulties were overcome and that the legislation was passed. If the Deputy is asking if the issues in question are being dealt with in the disabilities Bill, it is a proactive measure. If she wishes to know what the long-term solution is, all she need do is look at the directive passed last November.
