Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)

I have done so already by establishing the project team. I want the missing children hotline to be progressed. I am pleased to note that the incidence of children who go missing in Ireland is low and has fallen significantly in recent years. Statistics provided by the Garda Síochána indicate there are five open cases of children who went missing in this country in 2010. While even one missing child is one too many, some achievements have been made in this area and there is certainly much better co-ordination between the Garda and Health Service Executive. All instances of missing children should be reported immediately to the Garda Síochána, which has primary responsibility in this area.

On the issue of resources, these are challenging times financially. Various costings have been done on providing a hotline service, including some calculations made by non-governmental organisations. The figures vary significantly and one of the first tasks I will assign the project group is to investigate the precise potential costs and how they could be met. A variety of sources could be investigated. While the Department will clearly try to provide some support for the establishment of the hotline, we must examine the most economically efficient way to provide the service. We also need to consider what current services, including services provided by the Garda, could accommodate the hotline service. All these matters will be examined.

As I noted, the project team will meet shortly and we have assembled the relevant people with an interest in this area who will be able to make a contribution to establishing the hotline. I want to see progress made on the matter in the coming year.

See this speech in context