Ms Patricia Carey:

On a positive note, at the end of this year, the authority will take custody of two further adoption societies that are closing. In 2019, we took custody of the largest and oldest adoption society, Cúnamh, formerly the Catholic Protection and Rescue Society of Ireland, CPRSI. There are some 13,000 records from those sources. Along with our colleagues in Tusla, we regularly receive records from private nursing homes and retired doctors. We are keen that this should be part of the information media campaign. Any person who holds records, no matter how insignificant he or she might think them, which could include baby photographs or memorabilia from mother and baby homes, should hand it to the adoption authority or to Tusla. We have done significant work with the National Archives of Ireland over the past five years in order to become a centre of excellence in conservation and preservation. We are in the middle of a digitisation of all our files and records. They will be accessible and readable in the event that we transfer data to the Child and Family Agency, in order that files will not have to be handled, particularly the older and more sensitive files.

We continue to work with people. To answer the question on children who were sent abroad for adoption, as the Chairperson said, when we become aware of any form of illegal action, it is reported to An Garda Síochána. We have worked with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth by notifying it of any concerns we have in respect of historical actions, such as when children were taken outside the State.