Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Taoiseach said the issue of the Westbank Orphanage had been dealt with. My certain conviction and knowledge is that it has not been and I ask him to clarify this. If it has not been included in the commission's terms of reference, as is my belief, it should be.

With regard to the Magdalen laundries, as the Taoiseach said, the women concerned were held in horrific conditions. They were slaves. They should be part of this important investigation in their own right and treated as a module and not because the laundries may have been an exit or entry point to another institution. It is an accepted fact that children were transported on both sides of the Border. I cited the letter in today's edition of The Irish Timesbecause it happened to be on this day. Survivors are saying they are not part of the investigation. This should be rectified and I appeal to the Taoiseach to do so. I acknowledge that the Government has done some good work in looking at all of these matters, but we should not leave anybody out; we should be as inclusive as possible. I ask the Taoiseach to reflect on what I have said and, more important than what he and I have said, on what the survivors have said and rectify the matter by amending the terms of reference accordingly.

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