Tom Neville (Limerick County, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have read the findings in the report, which are alarming and startling. We had a discussion on 22 February 2017 when the witness appeared before the committee, and I read that report last night. The need to integrate 17 IT systems was mentioned. Many topics have been discussed already, so I am not going to discuss that issue again.

It was said that there was no electronic communication between Tusla and An Garda Síochána. Does Tusla use email? That is electronic communication. Why did that not supersede letters or faxes? I do not even put a fax number on my own literature any more because nobody uses fax machines, but I read, in the report I was given, that the precedent was set as post and faxes. I understand that the systems are not integrated and a vanilla system is not in place. Why were PDFs or spreadsheets not put on email so that an electronic record would have been available in the event of an audit carried out by the Garda or any other agency? Why did that not take precedent over post or fax?

I would appreciate some comments around HR and accountability. There seems to have been a disjointed approach taken or some dysfunction in terms of how people applied themselves to their tasks, or indeed the process or model of how they were supposed to engage with their roles. Who oversaw that? Who was supposed to make sure that was done correctly? I have read reports that suggested there was evidence of insufficient oversight to assure the executive and board of Tusla that staff members were adhering to the corporate procedures. Who oversees that? What part of the organisation makes sure that that actually happens? Why is it so disjointed across the different sectors?

It was mentioned that the electronic communication system will not be in place until 2019, but that the IT system will be available for use in July 2018. We have been given emails. Can the witness clarify that?

In terms of recruitment of social workers, does Tusla have an outline of the recruitment process or model from end to end? I do not expect the witnesses to articulate it orally, but if a copy of that could be provided to the committee it would be appreciated. We want to know how many steps or processes a person has to go through in the recruitment chain, from end to end, and what other parts of the public service are involved. That information would give us an impression of whether the process is too laborious or too long, leading to people dropping out of it. It would also be good to know if any statistics have been collected around people dropping out of the recruitment process. Where do they fall out of the process? Does it represent 60%, 70% or 80%? Given studies from overseas or in the UK, has Tusla carried out any studies around the blockages in recruitment been carried out? It would be good to know why people will not come to the Republic of Ireland.