Commissioner for Older People to stand down

The commissioner for older people is to step down after eight years in the role.

Speaking on his final day in the post, Eddie Lynch urged Stormont to bring forward legislation on age discrimination in line with the rest of the UK and Ireland.

He also called on the health minister to introduce a bill aimed at protecting venerable adults in care settings.

Eddie Lynch took up the post in 2016 and is only the second Commissioner for Older People for Northern Ireland since the office was established in 2011.

Speaking to the BBC's Good morning Ulster Programme, Mr Lynch criticised the "slow pace of change" in politics in Northern Ireland.

"It's a great frustration of mine that we're still sitting here in 2024, and Northern Ireland remains the only part of the UK or Ireland that doesn't have age discrimination legislation in relation to goods facilities and services," he said.

Mr Lynch also called on the health minister to introduce the Adult Protection Bill "without any further hesitation".

The proposed legislation was one of the main recommendations of a report into the treatment of residents at Dunmurry Manor Care Home, published in 2018.

The investigation into the Belfast care home has found a "horrific catalogue of inhuman and degrading treatment".

The Adult Protection Bill aims to update adult safeguarding regulations.

Mr Lynch said that one of his "great frustrations" was the "slow pace of change" in Northern Ireland.

"It does take time to get policies brought in, to get practices changed, and certainly legislation introduced," he said

'Fighting on their behalf'

Reflecting on his time in post, Mr Lynch said that the Covid-19 pandemic was the "greatest challenge that older people faced here in decades".

He said the pandemic "highlighted one of the needs for a commissioner" to ensure that older people had "somebody fighting on their behalf".

A new commissioner for older people is yet to be announced.

The appointment is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive Office.

Mr Lynch said it was important that a new appointment was made soon.

He said that older people "want to see a new person in place who can exercise all the legal powers of that office".