Mary Seery Kearney (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I apologise to the Chair for being late, as I had to dip out to another meeting for a quorum. I thank the Minister for his statement.

As the Minsiter can appreciate, much disappointment arose over what was an apparent U-turn. The fact is that people went in and gave their testimonies to the confidential session within the commission. The Minister cannot change the content of that report nor would we want him to have the ability to do that, naturally. However, there is a necessity for a mechanism, because there were individuals who felt they had been reflected in the report, but that it was incorrect and that there were errors in their testimony. There were also those who felt they misunderstood the process or that it was not clearly outlined to them exactly how the confidential evidence would be treated. It would appear, with due respect to everybody involved, that the treatment was very legalistic in how it was dealt with, rather than engaging with just how sensitive this was. People went in and relived the trauma of their youth and their time in these institutions over a considerable period, and they shared that.

For many, an archive is not sufficient. It is not an official enough recognition of a process they believe was committed to. They believe that the Minister gave a commitment to have their independent testimonies reviewed and for a report to be compiled from that. I would like to hear the Minister to elaborate on that beyond what he said in his opening statement.