28th March 2010

PEOPLE WITH AN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE PROBLEMS VOTING UNTIL NEW LEGISLATION IS INTRODUCED – INCLUSION IRELAND

 People with an intellectual disability who are over 18 and on the Electoral Register can be refused the opportunity to vote if the presiding officer decides they do not have the capacity to vote. It is the decision of the presiding officer to decide if the person has the capacity to vote. Ireland does not have any legislation that gives a definition of what capacity is and how it can be judged so it is down to individuals to decide. Inclusion Ireland is aware of people being refused access to vote, with no recourse to object to this, given that voting takes place over one day.

Access to voting is dependent on the area one votes in, and is down to individual discretion of a presiding officer. New legislation is needed to set out a definition of what determines capacity and how it is judged. Current law in the area of capacity is the Lunacy Act of 1871, which does not provide a definition of capacity. Inclusion Ireland believes the presumption of capacity must always be in place.  

Modern capacity legislation is needed before Ireland can ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Ireland was among the first countries to sign the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on March 30th 2007. Then Justice Minister Michael McDowell said it would be ratified “as soon as possible”. Three years later we are still waiting.  Article 29 of the UN Convention says: States Parties shall guarantee to persons with disabilities political rights and the opportunity to enjoy them on an equal basis with others,

ENDS

EVENT: Inclusion Ireland, Amnesty International Ireland and the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Trinity College Dublin are calling on the Government to urgently ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and will hold a joint press conference on this issue on Tuesday 30th March 2010 at 1.30pm in the School of Nursing and Midwifery, D’Olier St., Dublin 2.       

GO TO WEBPAGE OF CAMPAIGN FOR MODERN CAPACITY LEGISLATION & RATIFICATION OF THE UN CONVENTION

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