I thank the Minister for his comprehensive review of the work of the Department at present, particularly the work in the legislative area. The Department of Equality and Law Reform is a Department of good intentions with little muscle to put those intentions into practice. Few will publicly oppose the worthy objectives of equality and fair play for women or for people with disabilities in the competition for jobs or for advancement to the upper echelons of management. The Minister, of course, will speak eloquently, as he has here this morning, about the Government's commitment to equality, but what has been achieved to date in practice? The fact that only 13 per cent of people in wheelchairs are in open employment and only 12 per cent of the women in the Civil Service are in the principal officer management grade shows an appalling level of discrimination in our society. These obvious and unaccepable realities cry out, not just for studies and surveys, for reports and for new legislation, but for immediate practical action at Government level.
The setting up of this new Department by the Fianna Fáil-Labour Government in 1992 was intended to give a new sense of urgency to the pursuit of equality and fair play in Irish society. This Department has been charged with promoting and implementing equal treatment for a wide range of people who currently experience disadvantage, disability or unfair treatment within our society. The Minister carries a heavy burden of new legislation which can easily sap the energy of a small new Department. Unless he also makes real visible progress in practical achievement and concrete development, his noble aspirations will have little beneficial effect on those who depend on his work.
For this reason I would like to see a strategic management plan for his Department, with clear cut objectives and targets and the inclusion of priorities clearly related to the people who deserve priority, those who suffer discrimination, disadvantage or disability in our society today. This plan should be endorsed by the Government and implemented by all Departments under the direction of the Department of Equality and Law Reform. This Department, above all, must have the total support of Government if its plans are to be successful.
Members may feel that I am taking a very urgent approach to this, but the reality is that our society has developed immeasurably over the ten years and it is time we tackled the difficulties of people with disabilities on a national basis. I appreciate the Minister's difficulties. He has a small Department, he can bring in legislation, he can point to the difficulties; but we must make more progress than that and we must make it sooner. To date the Minister has failed to produce any clear cut objectives for his Department and seems to be unable to indicate what his priorities are. In reply to my parliamentary question on 7 March 1995, reported in volume 450, column 221, the Minister said:
I am reluctant to attempt identifying priorites since each area is a priority in its own right. There is also the consideration that any order of priorities requires constant review and adjustment in the light of changing circumstances, particularly where legislation is involved.... I prefer to adopt a pragmatic approach by maintaining pressure on all fronts with a view to making whatever progress is feasible at any given time.
The Minister's inability to identify the key areas of inequality he plans to tackle and overcome during the lifetime of this Government means that while much useful work is being done by his Department, there is no clear focus on priorities which need to be tackled as a matter of urgency. For this reason I am concerned about the management and direction of the Department. As I said, I appreciate it is a new Department and that the volume of legislation can sap energy and take up time; but if we are to make practical progress and see concrete developments, as the Minister wants, we need a more focused and targeted approach to some of the obvious areas of discrimination.
One of the most important tasks facing the Department this year is the divorce referendum. Fianna Fáil has already indicated its support in principle for a change to the Constitution to allow for remarriage. We have also expressed our concern that the role of the family in Irish society should be supported in a positive way. We regard as particularly important the protection of children and vulnerable spouses. We clearly stated a period of separation of up to five years should be required before remarriage could take place and that such period should be specified in the Constitution.
Fianna Fáil will not give an open-ended commitment to support a referendum unless the Government puts both the wording of the referendum and the contents of the legislation before the people in time for a full and open public debate on these critically important social issues. The Government has promised a referendum on 30 November; it is now a month before the summer recess and we have not seen as yet the Government's proposals. It is time the three parties in Government agreed on the form the referendum will take and make it available to the Opposition.
All the options available in this area have received extensive and protracted consideration. The principal options are set out in the Government's White Paper, published in 1992. All that remains is for the Government to make a decision, which it seems unable to do. If November 30 is still the target date, time is running out for the full and necessary discussions of the Government's proposals.
We need new measures to protect children and ensure their needs and rights are catered for in the event of remarriage. We need to look afresh at their position in the event of marriage breakdown and to ensure we avail of the most recent research and experience in forming the new legislation.
Both marriage counselling and family mediation services need to be greatly expanded. Our first emphasis should be on solving problems and keeping the family together through counselling. When the breakdown has occurred we should ensure an effecive mediation service is available to avoid confrontation and make the parting as amicable as possible. Special consideration should be given to the protection of children at this critical stage.
There is a need for a policy decision on those two areas. This Estimate provides for no increase over 1994 in the allocation of £750,000 for marriage counselling and there is provision of £300,000 for one new family centre for the family mediation services. This does not suggest the Government is serious about these services or has decided on a plan to meet present and future needs in this area.
The Minister is providing £500,000 for a public information campaign in conjunction with the divorce referendum. It is noteworthy that the entire sum provided to support marriage counselling services is only marginally greater, at £750,000. This demonstrates the low priority given to support for families in difficulty.
Apart from this, does the Minister not accept it is essential that there be a full, fair and balanced public debate on the divorce issue? In light of the fact that the Government plans to spend £500,000 promoting the case for divorce, does he not feel that in the interest of balance the arguments against changing the Constitution should be presented in a fair way as part of the information package so the electorate can make a fully informed decision?
Under the Legal Aid Board, the increase of £6.2 million in the provision for the scheme of civil legal aid and advice is welcome. This will provide for the much needed expansion of the scheme to ensure a comprehensive geographic spread, which is long overdue. It seems to do no more than that; the Minister has made no provision for the increased demand which would follow a "yes" vote in the referendum. Although only a small portion of the extra cost would occur this year, if only 5,000 currently separated couples sought legal aid to obtain divorces immediately after a "yes" vote in the referendum. Although only a small portion of the extra cost would occur this year, if only 5,000 currently separated couples sought legal aid to obtain divorces immediately after a "yes" vote, this would more than double the work of the Legal Aid Board and call for a substantial increase in this subhead. Perhaps the Minister will tell us what his Department's Estimates would be in this event and his views on that possibility.
Since the Legal Aid Board is now extending its offices througout the country, it is time to join the mediation services to these centres and provide a comprehensive service, centred on mediation, with legal aid where necessary. Everyone agrees mediation is preferable, but there is a need for a planned approach to development and the consequential expenditures. A great mistake could be made and it would be unfortunate to set up two separate services when they should at least be in the same buildings or more closely related. The Minister should consider this.
The Estimate provides for one extra centre for mediation services. If we are to provide a service throughout the country, and since mediation is so important, we need a network of mediation services, as the Minister will agree. We should see where this net work should be provided for the future.
I welcome the extra provision for community child care facilities in disadvantaged areas. However, I will reserve further comments for the detailed discussion of the individual subheads in the Estimates.
I congratulate the Minister on the development in legislative reform. This area is time consuming and difficult, but considerable progress has been made. I assure him of our support and co-operation in the heavy programme of legislation before him. We will give him every assistance in the detail of the legislation, bringing it forward and having it completed as quickly as possible.