Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Mr. Jeyes. At the risk of sounding repetitive, in his presentation he mentioned limited resources a number of times. When he spoke to us prior to the budget, he said he needed a certain amount just to stand still, but he did not even get it. How much of this, therefore, is down to the lack of resources?

What was the staff turnover ratio in County Laois during the lead-up to when the problem was identified? Has this been repeated in other areas? What measures has Mr. Jeyes taken to ensure similar practices have not been followed elsewhere?

Mr. Jeyes has said he has brought in additional experienced staff, but were the staff in the midlands not experienced? From where did the additional experienced staff come? If they came from other areas, did it creates gaps in them?

Can Mr. Jeyes tell us why this happened? Does he know what the shortfalls were? Was it due to a lack of experience? Was the person, or persons, involved inexperienced? Were there unsafe practices for a long period?

Does Mr. Jeyes have an update on the 822 unacknowledged Garda referrals Tusla is going through? Were they just not acknowledged or is the issue more serious than this?

Mr. Jeyes mentioned a figure of 88% and that where certain practices had been followed there were improvements. However, I am concerned about the other 12%. What measures has he put in place to ensure the figure will reach 100%?