Guardianship legislation planned as support for disabled adults

A bill on guardianship to provide legal and social support for adults with a disability who cannot look after themselves is expected to be considered by the cabinet soon.

Social Policy Minister Lawrence Gonzi said yesterday that once approved, the bill would be published and put on parliament's agenda.

This would be done this year as part of the country's contribution to the European Year of Persons with a Disability.

The minister was speaking during an official visit to the Centru Hidma Socjali in Sta Venera.

He also called on the National Commission for Persons with Disability to translate into a five-year action plan proposals it had made to the political parties before the election.

Commission chairman Joe Camilleri said that in the European Year of Persons with a Disability, the commission was requesting ministries to commit themselves to concrete measures in the coming months which truly offered equal opportunities to persons with a disability and their families.

The commission called on the social policy ministry to enact the Guardianship Act this year and to encourage other ministries to take similar initiatives.

Dr Gonzi promised to work on both initiatives. He said he already had a draft of the Act, which he would continue to analyse in the coming weeks.

The minister also promised he would consult other ministers to ensure that the year would be a success.

Mr Camilleri said that before the election, the commission had presented detailed proposals to the political parties on how the sector could be improved.

After the election, it had already held meetings about its proposals with the prime minister and Dr Gonzi and the proposals were agreed in principle.

The next step was translating the proposals into an action plan.

Dr Gonzi asked the commission to consult all the parties concerned, including civil society, and translate the proposals into a five-year action plan.