Sir, - I write to express my support for the parents planning a court challenge to the Sinnott ruling. Once again, we see the complete lack of rights for all children and adults with a disability. Every political party in the Dβil has promised a Disabilities Bill. Some have produced good quality position papers on the subject but none has produced a Bill.
However, the National Parents and Siblings Alliance (NPSA) has published the Disability Commissioner Bill 2001. It is an excellent legal document with a statement of basic rights and the means to secure them. This Bill seeks to establish one substantive right - the right to an assessment of needs and to the services that flow from that assessment.
It is time to stop all the talk about "blank cheques" on the provision of services and get on with the real job of supporting the Disability Commissioner Bill 2001. - Yours, etc.,
Cllr Finian McGrath, Griffith Avenue, Dublin 9.