Ivana Bacik

Order of Business:

On 19^th March, 2008, Ivana raised on the Seanad Order of Business her concern at the continued sale in Ireland of replica children’s jerseys for English football clubs carrying names and logos for alcohol companies.  Shirts or jerseys in the name of clubs like Liverpool FC are on sale in children’s sizes in sports shops all over Ireland, bearing ads for well-known alcoholic drinks.  

These jerseys continue to be sold here in Ireland, despite the fact that they are no longer available in Britain since 1^st January 2008, when a new rule was adopted there forbidding replica sports kits in children’s sizes from carrying sponsors’ names, where the sponsor is an alcoholic drink company.  

Ivana commented in the Seanad: ‘At a time when we are clearly seeing the terrible violence and destruction caused by alcohol abuse on our streets, it is a disgrace that children who wish to wear football kit for particular clubs are walking around advertising alcoholic drinks. Just this morning, in a city centre sports shop, I bought a Liverpool FC jersey for a 9-10 year old bearing the logo of a well-known beer. The Minister for Health has responded to previous queries about this issue by saying that no legislative remedies are available that could restrict or stop the sale of these jerseys. However, this is simply not good enough.

Political leadership is needed to ensure that children are not exposed in this way to alcohol advertising. I call on the Minister for Health to take urgent action to ensure that this practice is ended in the same way that it has been ended in the UK.’ 

Senator Ivana Bacik: Will the Deputy Leader convene a debate on Irish Aid and development programmes, specifically on the need to mainstream disability rights in development programmes? I have just come from a seminar on disability and development being run by the Centre for Global Health at Trinity College Dublin in conjunction with Dóchas and Irish Aid. In the year in which Ireland signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities — it has still not been ratified — it would be timely for the House to debate the importance of placing the rights of people with disabilities centre stage in our development programmes. Irish Aid had done a good deal of work on this issue but Ireland is required, under Article 32 of the convention, to promote disability awareness in our international co-operation programmes.

It is very important we meet this requirement, especially in light of the report published yesterday by the Disability Equality Specialist Support Agency which found that almost half of child care providers in Dublin do not include disabled children in their services. Even at home, we are falling short of providing for the rights of children with disabiities. On an international stage, it has been estimated that only 2% of disabled children in developing countries receive any education. It is critical, therefore, that we address disability issues in development aid and Irish Aid programmes. I echo the call made by Senator Ormonde yesterday that the House debate Irish Aid and ask that such a debate include the issue of disability.

I support Senator Alex White’s comments on the rights of undocumented persons living here and those who have experienced difficulties in the area of family reunification. I raised this issue last week. The Refugee Information Service produced a report showing the difficulty experienced by those with refugee status who seek to bring family members, dependants and children to Ireland from their home countries. We treat these people, who have secured refugee status and been through persecution in their home countries, appallingly badly by preventing them from bringing their families to Ireland.