Averil Power (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. McBride for his opening statement. He mentioned the number of social workers. Is that the full complement in Tusla, including child protection, or just those devoted to the adoption side? What level of extra staffing and funding would the organisation need to make the records accessible - Mr. McBride stated that cross-referencing the information would be a large job - and run an efficient information and tracing service? He also mentioned the current waiting times and that it was two months for priority 1 cases. Is that the time it takes someone to get a first meeting or to get the information released? How much time does it take after the first meeting to get the information that is being sought? How is that affected by resources? What percentage of people on the waiting list are classified as priority 1, that is, they are urgent cases and Tusla hopes to see them within two months? What is the average waiting time and what is the longest waiting time? People have told me they have been waiting for two years or longer to get the information.

Given how the Bill is structured, proper staffing will require the involvement of social workers at various stages. This will be resource-intensive and present people with a challenge, as they will have to wait for long periods before someone becomes available to help them. The experience of many birth parents who dealt with social workers when being separated from their children was not a positive one. For that reason and regardless of the credentials or approaches of the social workers with whom they deal now, they are reluctant to engage with anyone from that profession. Some have been working with counsellors with whom they are comfortable while some are more likely to rely on the support of others. Must the process require social workers in the way that it does? Under a provision in the Bill I introduced last year with Senator van Turnhout, birth mothers and adoptees could engage with counselling professionals of their own choice. The professional would have to be properly accredited and a member of the appropriate professional bodies but this provision meant that instead of having to wait for a social worker in Tusla to be assigned to a case and to avoid instances where people are not comfortable with that concept, one could find someone she or he was comfortable with in line with the guidelines set out for the process. Information sheets on how the process should work would be given to the counsellors. This is preferable to the social worker-driven model. What are the witnesses' opinions on this point?

It was stated that the register would be proactive and that once a person entered her or his details, Tusla would begin searching for the other party to elicit that person's contact preference. Will this be the case even where someone is registering for the purpose of making it clear that her or his preference is for no contact? For example, if a birth mother registers to put on record her preference for no contact, will a search still be initiated? I am seeking clarity on this point.