Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

A common theme is the need to ensure an informed debate on the referendum. There are dozens of public meetings taking place in each of the constituencies which political parties attend, and in some cases constituencies have come together to hold these meetings. The campaign for children has had the campaign bus going around the country. Many politicians have met those involved, have gone on local radio and have contributed articles to local newspapers. I commend local radio which is covering the referendum. I have done many local radio interviews and I am aware that colleagues have also done so. There is an openness to a discussion on the referendum. I support what Deputies Ó Caoláin and Troy have said that everyone has a responsibility across the political divide. We have all supported the referendum and we have to go out and do the work to ensure the people are fully informed.

The Referendum Commission has a budget of €1.9 million. Members will have noticed that the commission asked this week that it would have more time from the media. I cannot underestimate the importance of the role of the media. People get their information from the media on so many topics but if the media will not cover it in any great detail, there is an even greater onus on all of us at local level to ensure the information gets out and that we, as politicians, do everything possible by canvassing door to door, as Senator Burke and others are doing, and by providing information in places where people gather. The non-governmental organisation community is doing much work to get the information out. There will also be the usual information campaign on the media, using advertising to inform the people of the date of the vote and the issues involved. There will be much more information in the newspapers and in the media in the next three weeks. That should begin to deal with what has been a deficit in interest in the referendum.

At public meetings, a large number of issues are raised and people are very interested. The referendum is getting a strong and positive response from many of the people I meet. As Deputy Ó Caoláin said, if there are concerns, let us deal with them. If there is a concern that it is about too much State power, let us say it is not and that it is about putting the child at the centre. Let us be careful to impart what it is and is not about. It is following on from the work of the committee and it is about a range of issues. It is not about all issues to do with children but about specific issues, especially in family law, and about inserting a general right in the Constitution. I note that Deputy Catherine Byrne is reading the commission's report. As the report states in respect of the rights outlined for children, it will be for the courts to decide at a future date what precisely are those rights. The commission makes that point very clearly. We have put in an enabling provision that highlights the rights of children, for the first time, in an explicit way. We give rights to all sorts of people in the Constitution: rights of association, rights of religious freedom and rights to the family, but rights for children have been missing. That will be provided for if the people support the referendum, and that is the key point.

We must continue to give information to the people, hold public meetings and get the information out. The Referendum Commission has a budget of €1.9 million and my Department has a budget of €1 million to ensure the information gets out. We will use it in every way possible to impart information. The next three weeks are crucial in getting the information out.

Deputy Troy made a point about resources. I agree that resources are crucial. However, I have consistently made the point that it is not simply about resources, it is also about reform. We must do better with the money that is being spent in this area as in every other area, and we must prioritise. I assure Members that change is under way under Mr. Gordon Jeyes. One can see it in the way cases are being dealt with. It is much clearer now whether a case needs family support or if it is a child protection issue. As we have reduced the number of managers from 34 to 19, there is more direct accountability from the front line to the managers in the system. That is critical. I received an increase in funding last year from 2011, but a severe financial situation is facing every Department and my Department is not immune. Nevertheless, we have to do the best we can to preserve the front-line services. There is still considerable funding, more than €700 million, being put into child and family support services and child protection services by the HSE, and there is another couple of hundred million from my Department. Therefore, approximately, €1 billion is being spent in this area and we must ensure it is spent in the best way possible and that we have agreed priorities between the voluntary sector, which is working in this area, and the statutory sector. That has been missing in the past. We are keen to have strong reform.

We are moving to standardised business processes to ensure we record properly everything around the country that comes to the attention of the child and family services. We have a new national ICT system, which will make a difference, and a strong service plan with key performance indicators being collected much more coherently than heretofore. I have said repeatedly at the committee that I was not satisfied with the quality of the data I was receiving at national level, but steps are being taken to deal with that issue.

I am pleased to say that, in November, HIQA will, for the first time, commence inspection of child protection services in Carlow and Kilkenny, under the new standards. HIQA launched its inspection standards to ensure child protection services reach the desired standards. Yesterday HIQA announced it will inspect residential settings where there are children with disabilities. While these inspections have been delayed for far too long, we are moving to a situation where standards are in place for child protection that have to be met throughout the country. As Deputy Ó Caoláin said, this is not just about historical issues. There is a job to be done currently which is part of a new regime. These are changes that will make a difference.

I was asked about the monitoring of the dioceses and standards therein. Effectively, the director of child and family services works with Mr. Ian Elliott, CEO of the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland, on the monitoring of the dioceses. The development of the Children First legislation will be very important because it will mean people will be under an obligation to report. Also, the Criminal Justice (Withholding of Information on Offences against Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012 provides that where any person has information that a crime is being committed or a sexual crime has been committed and he or she does not report it, that is a criminal offence. That strong legislation has been in play from 1 October.

Dáil na nÓg meets once a year. I have raised with the Taoiseach the point about the involvement of young people in the constitutional convention and we will see how that can be progressed further to ensure liaison with young people. Dáil na nÓg is an effective system which operates at county level. It meets formally once a year but it does much in between at county level. The report on body image published this week was part of an initiative from Dáil na nÓg. It is an active organisation which listens to the views of young people. The research involved young people who played a major role in designing the questionnaire and presenting the findings. It was a very positive initiative.

A question was asked about the availability of places for 17 year olds in Oberstown.

The difficulty is that to move the 17 year olds from St. Patrick's, we must find approximately 30 places. There will be 30 places available by 2014 in the new building in Oberstown. In the meantime, I will examine whether it is possible to use some of the places currently available in Oberstown for some of the more vulnerable 17 year olds. I must examine the situation carefully and ensure we have the supports and security that will be needed. I will do this as a matter of urgency to see if some of the 17 year olds currently in St. Patrick's can be moved.

A number of governance issues with regard to Oberstown are being examined. Roster changes will be required to create more space. I am confident this will be sorted shortly and that it will create more places. We will need the new building to deal with the number of 17 year olds involved. I will continue discussions with the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter, and within my Department to see whether we can increase the number of spaces that may be available in Oberstown for 17 year olds. Despite this, we will have to wait for the new building to have 30 spaces available. I will discuss with the Minister, Deputy Shatter, whether there are alternative arrangements that could be considered in the meantime.

I think I have covered the points made by the Deputy.