Carol Nolan (Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an mBille fíorthábhachtach seo agus gabhaim mo bhuíochas as ucht an deis chun labhairt faoi. I welcome everyone in the Gallery and commend Deputy Clare Daly on introducing this important Bill.

Sinn Féin has consistently highlighted the need for redress for all survivors of abuse in State institutions or by agents of the State. I commend in particular my colleagues, Deputies Mary Lou McDonald and Gerry Adams, on their tireless campaigning on behalf of the Magdalen women and survivors of symphysiotomy. The abuse of children while in the care of residential institutions is one of the darkest stains on the State's history. These survivors, many of whom are now elderly, were abused in the past and neglected for many years by the State before their suffering was acknowledged. The statutory fund established to provide for their needs is paltry in comparison with the damage and hurt inflicted on them.

There are serious concerns in respect of the limitations of the fund, both in terms of the services approved and eligibility for assistance under the scheme.

As we know, there was significant debate at the time of the establishment of the fund as to whether survivors of institutions not covered under the Residential Institutions Redress Board would be eligible for assistance under this fund. That debate should never have happened. These people have been damaged and hurt and we need to face up to that and to, at least, give them redress and the respect they deserve.

Bethany House and the Magdalen laundries were not covered under the fund but there was a promise in the legislation that consideration would be given to widening the scheme and for a review after two years. The Minister has announced a public consultation process in respect of this review and my party will certainly be making a submission to it. Nevertheless, it is unacceptable that this basic promise was not kept. It is the height of disrespect that this review has not yet taken place. It needs to be done. For survivors that have been so let down by the State, it is inexcusable and it does nothing to restore even a small bit of trust in the State or faith in the scheme. I believe that the scheme should be widened to include survivors of other State residential institutions and those who may not have previously sought a claim but satisfy the other criteria. I see no reason to exclude categories of survivors where there has been clear abuse and neglect.

In regard to the operation of the fund, I found the reports of the appeals officer very interesting. The latest report notes a 110% increase in the number of appeals received in respect of Caranua between 1 February 2015 and 31 January 2016. The number of appeals increased from 47 to 99. A significant proportion of the complaints relate to the manner in which the applications were processed by Caranua, including frustrations with the levels of bureaucracy and delays in getting a written decision from Caranua. Again, much of this frustration originates from the establishment of the scheme in the first place as many survivors felt that they were being put in a position of having to go before a board and beg for what is theirs by right. In one example, a woman was denied funding for bedding materials after a consultant orthopaedic surgeon recommended a particular type of bedding and mattress. She was denied that basic necessity. In another case, a man was refused travel expenses for a trip through which he hoped to conclusively establish his identity by means of DNA testing. While these appeals were upheld or referred back to Caranua for further consideration by the appeals officer, it clearly demonstrates the difficulties encountered by survivors in terms of this scheme.

Another issue that should be considered in terms of this scheme is the possibility of the establishment of an enhanced medical card for survivors of residential institutional abuse. As we know, many survivors are in their elderly years and expenditure under the fund is significant. It would be appropriate, and it would give some degree of comfort to survivors to know that their medical needs were provided for into the future. This would, perhaps, continue past the lifetime of the residential institutions statutory fund and would be in the best long-term interests of this group of survivors. Arguably, it would also provide equity to this group of survivors and recognise the impact of childhood institutionalisation and abuse on them.

It is unfortunate that the survivors feel so let down by the operation of this fund and the fact that the promises made by the State to review it have not been kept. We must learn from the mistakes of the past. We must work to develop the appropriate means of supporting people who have been wronged by the State. These people have been wronged. We must acknowledge this wrong and put in place the right supports to help them in their lives. Unfortunately, there will be other scandals. The treatment of school sex abuse survivors by the current and previous Government has been shocking and the redress has been minimal. I look forward to working with colleagues, to hearing the views of survivors and, hopefully, to making this scheme simpler and more accessible to survivors. I am happy to support this Bill progressing to Committee Stage.

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