Autism group says Disabilities Bill stops short of enshrining rights

The proposed new Disabilities Bill "would appear to stop well short of enshrining disability rights in legislation", the Irish Autism Alliance has warned.

The alliance also cautioned that the planned special needs education forum, which the Minister for Education, Dr Woods, said would inform the drafting of his Bill, "could last even longer than a tribunal".

Extending a cautious welcome to the "aspirations" in the Minister's statement outlining the plans, the alliance said legislation was needed to enshrine the "absolute rights of the disabled to appropriate education and services for so long as they benefit from them". The Government proposals should be subject to a strict timetable, a spokesman said, and measures aimed at delivering service to those newly diagnosed with autism "should be set up now".

The alliance also called for a forum to hear submissions from parents of older children "who have received little or no service to date". The forum would report in six months, while in the meantime, a Department of Education official should be charged with "enacting remedial action in each of these cases, starting with an independent statement of needs".

The National Association for the Mentally Handicapped also gave a qualified welcome to the proposed legislation, but said it was not clear how the rights to assessment and appropriate education would cover young adults over 18.

"[The association] is aware of young people who have reached school-leaving age and have been offered no further education programme or service suitable to their needs," it said in a statement. "What is on offer to these young people come September when schools and colleges reopen?"

It said the proposals were a direct response to the pressure from disabilities groups in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling on the Sinnott case.

"The very real disquiet in the country over the treatment of children and adults with disabilities has forced the Government to look afresh at the right to a legal assessment of need, despite the earlier rejection of this by the Department of Finance."