Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I want to support the Bill which, in essence, will provide free health services for women who were residents of the Magdalen laundries and similar laundries that were operated such as St. Mary's Training Centre, Stanhope Street, Dublin.

The Bill also provides that such women will not be required to pay the statutory charge for public acute hospital inpatient services and that the ex gratiapayments will not be included in the financial assessment of means under the Nursing Homes Support Scheme Act 2009.

However, I am concerned that the Magdalen laundries have been excluded from the commission of investigation into mother and baby homes which the Government is establishing this week. The mother and baby homes and Magdalen laundries were both parts of Ireland's architecture of containment of so-called "problem" women and, as such, should be investigated under the commission of investigation. Their exclusion from the commission's remit is unacceptable.

As regards the contents of the Bill, the proposals as outlined do not fully reflect the recommendations outlined by Mr. Justice Quirke. The Quirke scheme's proposals for those affected included full pension rights and the granting of a medical card similar to that given to State-infected hepatitis-C survivors under the HAA card scheme.

A report by Martin McAleese was initiated in June 2011 to investigate the Magdalen laundries. This report charts the grim details of the experiences of at least 10,000 women. However, up to 12,000 women had been resident in the ten Magdalen laundries operated by four religious orders in the reference period from 1922 to 1996. The inhumane conditions of work, the de factoslave labour status of the women involved and the gross unfairness of their indefinite incarceration in the laundries represented a grave breach of their human rights. The evidence definitely reveals that the Irish State colluded in the operation of the laundries. The justice system essentially sent women to the laundries, the services of which were then availed of by State agencies such as hospitals. The courts sent women to the laundries, with some 26% of entries via the State system, while gardaí returned runaways to them. The process was evidently not voluntary in nature. The State failed the women involved by not implementing effective supervision of the laundries, upholding its own health and safety standards or making provision in respect of the women's educational and social welfare rights. Approximately 1,000 survivors of the Magdalen laundries are still alive. The United Nations Committee Against Torture accused the State of grievously breaching the human rights of these women and its report led the Government to initiate the McAleese inquiry.

Justice for Magdalenes Research, the National Women's Council of Ireland, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties and Amnesty International have called on the Government to honour the promise it made to the survivors in June 2013 to implement all of Mr. Justice Quirke's recommendations in respect of a Magdalen restorative justice scheme. Criticising the Bill before the House, Maeve O'Rourke of Justice for Magdalenes Research stated:

This draft legislation does not meet Judge Quirke’s recommendation on healthcare for Magdalene women. It is an obvious and unacceptable paring back of what the Government promised as part of the women’s redress package. Judge Quirke could not have been clearer in recommending that each woman should receive a card entitling her to the full range of health services provided to state-infected Hepatitis-C survivors under the HAA card scheme. Instead, the Bill promises little more than the regular medical card, which most of the women already have.

Dr. Katherine O'Donnell of the same organisation stated:

The women who have received their lump sum compensation and pensions have promised not to sue the State in exchange for the full redress package recommended by Judge Quirke. However, this legislation is in clear breach of the women’s legitimate expectations [and of the promise made to them in 2013.

Claire McGettrick, also of the same organisation, added:

Without explanation, the Government has also ignored Judge Quirke’s recommendation to extend the Nursing Homes Support Scheme Act 2009 to Magdalene women who lack full capacity so that applications to the Magdalene scheme can be made on their behalf and their assets can be managed by a court-appointed representative in their best interests. It is imperative that legislation is introduced immediately to protect women in institutionalised settings, to provide independent advocates and ensure that their interests are protected.

Finally, Orla O'Connor of the National Women's Council of Ireland stated:

The Bill as currently proposed is a further denial of the rights of women survivors of the Magdalene Laundries. It undermines the Scheme as proposed by Judge Quirke, which provided only minimal recognition for the abuse women suffered. A particular area of concern is the denial of full pension entitlements for the women. Judge Quirke clearly recommended that the women should be treated as if they had made full pension contributions ... The women urgently require this compensation so as to provide a decent standard of living in their older years.

These criticisms come almost exactly 23 months after Taoiseach's apology to Magdalen laundry survivors on 19 February 2013. The Taoiseach received much praise for that apology and rightfully so. It was an apology that was long overdue from the State to these women. However, the Bill before us is a betrayal of the women to whom the Taoiseach apologised. The satisfaction felt by the women who were present in the Visitors' Gallery to receive that apology is turning to dust because the actions of the Taoiseach and his Government are failing to honour the recommendations set out in the Quirke report. Of course, the Taoiseach has won plaudits for standing up to the church in terms of the way he dealt with the Cloyne report and in the context of his apology in respect of the Magdalen laundries. The Taoiseach is one of the longest-serving Members of the House. In that context, the fact that he waited almost three decades before he found the courage to offer an apology should have been a pointer with regard to his real commitment on these issues. It took him 30 years to become man enough to apologise to the women involved. During his first 20 years as a Deputy, these laundries were in existence and their activities were well known within society. However, it was only after 30 years that the Taoiseach saw fit to apologise. He expects us to engage in a whitewash in respect of the Quirke report by ignoring the recommendations it contains. By refusing to engage on this issue for such a long period, the Taoiseach did a great disservice to both the House and to himself, as a Member of it. That is appalling.

It is incumbent on the Taoiseach to issue another apology to the women affected. There can be no fake apology on this occasion. He must avoid remaining silent on this issue and explain the rationale for not ensuring that the survivors of the laundries will live out their lives in the best possible circumstances. In issuing a second apology, the Taoiseach owes it to the women to behave in the way he did in the House three years ago when he found himself in a very demanding situation. I ask the Labour Party to ensure that the women involved obtain justice. At the very least, the minimum they require is that which is set out in the Quirke report. It would be appalling if those in the Labour Party allowed the Taoiseach to somersault down the steps opposite before making another empty apology. Following through on the recommendations contained in the Quirke report is the correct way to honour the victims of what was a very dark period in our history. I ask the Labour Party to ensure that the Taoiseach honours the survivors of the laundries.

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