Hey Everyone!
Our blog today is an exciting one! An account of our first meeting in Leinster House, which ultimately shaped the campaign we're leading today! We met with Deputy Liam Twomey (our local Wexford TD) and Deputy David Stanton - Chairman of the Justice Oireachtas Committee in charge of the Capacity Bill (2013).
| David Stanton, TD |
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| Liam Twomey, TD |
Liam Twomey, TD, was re-elected to the Dail in February 2011. He was appointed Fine Gael's Deputy Leader in the Seanad, and Spokesperson on Finance in October 2007. His Living Wills Bill was incorporated into the Capacity Bill (2013).
David Stanton, TD, was first elected to Dáil Éireann in 1997. He is the current Chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality. Considering the wealth of expertise shared by both TD's it was with great enthusiasm that we accepted Mr Twomey's invitation for a meeting in the Dáil Bar of Leinster House.
Bustling up Kildare Street that morning, coffee in one hand, notes in the other; we had ideas, we had questions, and undoubtedly a lot of nerves too. We were greeted by Deputy Twomey's secretary and a few moments later, over coffee, we found ourselves sharing a great conversation with Deputies Twomey and Stanton over all the issues that had led us to that meeting: publication of the bill, the UN Convention, our appointments as Equality Officers and our potential role in furthering change.
The meeting gave us a great insight into what our role could most effectively be, in terms of promoting reform of the Lunacy Regulation Act (1871). Initially, we felt we could create a policy document with a list of proposed amendments. However, we crucially learned through our discussions that, unlike Marriage Equality, there was more of a "top-down" momentum behind the Capacity Bill's publication. It was being passed, not because society was crying out for change, but because of Ireland's signing of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006) The Capacity Bill signifies our intent to ratify this Convention.
As there is sufficient political momentum behind this bill, we questioned “Is society ready for the implications of this bill?” for people with disabilities but also: the professional duties of legal and health care professionals. As mentioned by Liam Twomey TD we will be among: “The first generation of graduates that will have to deal with these new changes when they come about”. So are we prepared to do so?
The purpose of the campaign seemed to shift towards: AWARENESS, EDUCATION, DEBATE, INFORMATION SHARING –all these terms are unfortunately bashed about as generic solutions to debates about any social issue. So let’s be more specific about what they mean for us! Following our meeting, we learned that our role was to start a campaign targeting awareness of the main principle changes proposed in the bill. What were they again?
- Abolition of the ward of court system and a functional approach to capacity
- A move away from best interests practice towards acknowledging will and preferences of the individual.
We agreed that focus groups and powerpoint presentations with different members of the student body in UCD and Trinity would help us to generate an attitudes and opinions poll.
Our meeting with Deputy Liam Twomey TD and David Stanton TD, seemed nothing but invaluable in terms of the clear sense of direction it gave Capacity2Change. We learned about the broader landscape surrounding the Capacity Bill (2013) and the ways in which it could have maximum and significant impact.
So here’s to new and exciting directions for Capacity2Change!
Read up on our next post where we’ll be discussing our very first presentation night in enemy territory - UCD (I believe what Rachel meant to say here was "the greatest university to grace God's green earth - Patricia).
Best Wishes,
Rachel :)
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