Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

It is inexplicable and frankly inexcusable that Government will not extend the redress and apology it finally and belatedly gave the survivors of the Magdalen laundries and other institutions where children or mothers suffered abuse to children who went through Bethany Home. It is unacceptable. It is very disappointing that the Government seems to be dancing around semantics, finding excuses and seeking to make frankly trivial and unsustainable distinctions between one and the other in order to avoid giving that long overdue apology and redress.

The criteria that applied to the Residential Institutions Redress Board were the following:

Were you resident in an industrial school, reformatory school, children's home, special hospital or a similar institution at any time while you were under the age of 18? Were you subjected to sexual, physical or emotional abuse or serious neglect while you were resident in that institution? Have you suffered physical, psychiatric or other injury consistent with that abuse?

Those criteria should apply to any institution. They were criteria under which people were invited to apply to the redress scheme. Clearly, as has been mentioned, there is overwhelming evidence that there are many people who were then children who fit those criteria and were in Bethany Home. It is shocking to discover 219 unmarked graves of children in Mount Jerome cemetery, some of whom died of malnutrition, the story of Derek Leinster and the neglect and abuse he clearly suffered. I cannot understand the Government's failure to give that apology, particularly when the State had a role in inspecting those institutions and had knowledge that abuse and neglect were occurring. It is just not acceptable. Given the tiny numbers of people involved, the very small amount of money that would be involved in extending the scheme and the fact that giving the apology costs nothing, I appeal to the Government to shift its position on this. The only thing at stake is giving people the justice they deserve. I do not see what is at stake in the Government denying the survivors of Bethany Home that justice and redress.

I appeal to the Minister of State to support the call made in this motion and back away from her current position.

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