Mairead McGuinness Fine Gael MEP

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As the EU 27 have formally ratified the UN Convention on Disability, which commits countries to introduce legal rights to education, health care and work opportunities for people with disabilities and abolish legislation, customs and practices that discriminate against people with a disability, Mairead McGuinness, Ireland East Fine Gael MEP has called on the Irish Government to finally make the same commitment.

The MEP, a member of the European Parliament Inter Group on Disability, said that while Ireland signed the UN Convention on Disability in 2007, it still remains to be ratified.

“The Convention marks an historic development, lifting people with disabilities from a grossly unequal past into a future where they can play their part in the economic and social life of the country and achieve their full potential as people on an equal footing with their peers.

“Delaying further the ratification of the Convention would actually bring shame on Ireland. We have lost an opportunity to show leadership on this issue.

“Delaying doing the right thing often costs more in the longer-term,” she said.

McGuinness said the EU ratification marks a milestone for human rights as it is the first time in history that the EU has become a party to an international human rights treaty.

A summary of what the UN Convention contains follows.