Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)

I move amendment No. 26:

In page 20, between lines 32 and 33, to insert the following:

"34.—Nothing in the Residential Institutions Redress Act 2002 prohibits an applicant from disclosing the fact that he or she made an application to the Board and the name of the institution, the category of abuse and injury and the amount of the award that are referable to that application.".

As everyone knows, very little information can be disclosed about a person's appearance before the board due to prohibitions set out in the Residential Institutions Redress Act 2002. Amendment No. 26 seeks to amend the Act to allow people to disclose the fact that they have made applications to the board and the name of the institution, category of abuse and injury and amount of award referable to such applications. I am not asking for people to be allowed to provide a great deal of information. Many would like to say more about their experiences with the redress board. Permission to disclose the information set out in the amendment would allow them to at least say something. Amendment No. 26 would also serve to provide the public with some information on the operation of the redress board.

Much dissatisfaction has been expressed by various sources about the experience of going before the board.

Some people consider — this has been indicated to me — that their experience was similar to being abused again. I do not say that lightly. Many people have had very bad experiences. They felt they were not given enough time and that the aim was simply to categorise them so as to determine how much money they would get. The overall impression was that the board did not want to hear much from people. People are frustrated that, when they appear before the board, they cannot talk about what happened.

While the amendment does not go very far in terms of what people would be allowed to talk about, it would at least allow them to provide some information. If the Minister does not accept the amendment, which is probable, I urge her to take on board some of the representations coming to us in terms of the experience of people who have appeared before the board. Perhaps she could reconsider the legislation and the operation of the board to see if she could make the experience of appearing before the latter more positive. Many people are disturbed at having to go before the board and, subsequently, by their experience of so doing. This is not something I dreamed up, it has been indicated to me directly by people who have undergone the experience.

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