Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

There have been a number of moments during this session where people’s jaws simply dropped to the floor over some of the testimony given. The idea and reality that a child or young person in the care of the State would be asked to prove his or her own abandonment is just incredible. My question is for the members. Would it be appropriate for us as a committee to write to the relevant Departments to ask about that practice?

While it will probably feature in the document in nine months’ time, we do not need to wait that long to challenge that practice. It is incredible.

Mr. Stanley described special care being used as a de facto detox unit. Will he describe that? He said there was a lack of appropriate detox and rehabilitation services for young people in care and that, in some cases, special care is being used as a de facto detox unit. Will the witness expand on that a little bit? What are the options for young people in care to access detox facilities?