ON THE COUCHCormac Rennick is chairman of the Irish Autism Association
Family/personal:
Married to Sarah with daughter Catherine and son Conor.
Which living person do you most admire and why?
My daughter Catherine. She has had autism for 12 years and has the capacity to make me laugh and cry in equal amounts. She constantly copes with all the difficulties that life has thrown at her with a smile on her face.
What do you regard as the top three problems facing Ireland's health system?
Lack of speech and language therapists and occupational therapists. The system is overly bureaucratic and not run in a business-like fashion.
What is your greatest extravagance?
I can't think of any but the money still manages to be spent all the same.
What is your most unhealthy habit?
Smoking - I wish I'd never started.
How do you relax?
Cooking, doing The Irish Timescrossword and hillwalking - not all simultaneously.
Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
Brian Cowen, because it's good to talk to the person who controls the purse strings. My wife Sarah so she could articulate the needs of people with autism and Kevin Whelan, who could explain to Mr Cowen how to spend the money.
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
To know with certainty that after my wife and I are gone services will exist to ensure Catherine, and other people in Ireland with autism, can lead a happy and fulfilled life in caring and nurturing environments which are properly resourced.
What trait do you most value in your friends?
I insist on honesty from my friends, which means that they also need diplomatic skills.
What talent would you most like to have?
I'd love to be a better musician.
Do you use alternative/ complementary medicines or therapies?
I don't, but Catherine is on a gluten- and casein- (dairy protein) free diet. It helps her with her concentration and comprehension.
What is your earliest memory?
Being on a civil rights march in Newry in 1969 at the age of seven. My mother still has the poem I wrote straight after the march.
What is your most treasured possession?
My family and friends.
What other career might you have chosen?
A teacher at school suggested I become a lawyer and it probably wouldn't have been a bad idea. I also considered politics once, but I think I would struggle with the party whip.
What books or films have inspired you?
Looking Through the Eyes of Aliens by Jasmine Lee O'Neill, an autistic savant who describes what life is like for an autistic person. Movies that have inspired me include One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest and My Left Foot, both of which illustrate the indomitable human spirit.
Earlier this month Irish Autism Action launched a new national helpline - 1890 818518