Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)

I do not understand this area as well as the Minister does. I note, however, Professor Eileen Munro of the London School of Economics has warned that it may end up draining resources from front-line protection services. Dr. Helen Buckley, Trinity College Dublin, made several points in correspondence with me. For example, the claim that the harm and misery experienced by some of the children who featured in recent high-profile cases were as a result of a failure to report is a misperception. In fact, she points out the majority of these cases had been reported many times to the Health Service Executive social workers but too often there was a failure to respond adequately which is a different issue. She also points out the proposed legislation will not address some of the systemic weaknesses in child protection practices identified by the research review of recent child abuse inquires and the National Review Panel reports which include inadequate management oversight, lack of strategic multidisciplinary planning, absence of child-mindedness on the part of adult health and related services and a general dearth of joined-up work between the sectors serving children and families. Reviews have also demonstrated a dearth of local policy on assessment and planning for children in out-of-home care-----

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