Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for the opportunity to speak to the appointment of the new Ombudsman for Children, and I wish Dr. Niall Muldoon the best of luck, as it is a very important position. I also thank the previous ombudsman, Ms Emily Logan, for her fantastic work and commend her on it. I wish her well in her new position dealing with human rights issues.

These are important issues and the country must ensure the human rights of children are protected. We must deal with the matter in a strong and constructive fashion. The role of the Ombudsman for Children is to promote and safeguard the rights and welfare of children and young people up to 18 years old and investigate complaints made by children and young people, or adults on their behalf. This happens with schools, hospitals, Departments and certain public bodies. The ombudsman also has a mandate to accept and investigate complaints about how the State provides services or makes decisions about children. The office has dealt with approximately 8,500 complaints from the public to date.

Today, there are more than 8,000 cases of child abuse, neglect and welfare concerns involving children at risk which are waiting to be allocated a social worker. This makes a mockery of the children's rights referendum and it amounts to blatant neglect. In the media today we saw that the plan to reform special needs funding for children with disabilities has been put off again. I brought legislation before the House which was accepted by the Government, the Down's Syndrome (Equality of Access) Bill. We were hoping such measures could be implemented for children in September but the plans have been parked and the final decision has been deferred. They will not be in place in September. We gave the Government the opportunity for a good build-up to aim for the September target, but the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, indicated today that it will not happen. This is unacceptable and from a children's rights perspective, it amounts to neglect.

We must focus on children in poverty in this society. The rate of children in poverty has increased from 7.7% in 2012 to 8.2%. This is a national scandal. There are also 1.4 million people - 31% of the population - who cannot afford basic items. There are 135,000 children in poverty, so we must address that issue. A total of 25% of the population cannot afford to heat their homes, and we all know how cold it has been in recent weeks. Most of these people are unemployed or have a disability. Ireland ranks 37th out of 41 OECD countries with respect to child poverty.

The other issue I mentioned is wealth and access to special education. The report of the Department of Education and Skills states that children in wealthy areas receive more special education teaching than children in other areas. In the Dublin 4 area on the south side, for example, there is a higher number of resource teachers than is the case in parts of my constituency, Dublin 17. The reason is that the more affluent parents can have private assessments carried out for between €400 and €600. Once the assessment is carried out, they can get the resources for their children. Good luck to them if they have a child with disability, but it does not mean one should exclude the children in Dublin 17. It is unacceptable. All children should have equal access to education services, irrespective of their parents' wealth or resources.

The role of the Ombudsman for Children is to promote the rights and welfare of children. We must fight strongly for that. It must also investigate complaints about services and provide advice regarding children's rights as well as conduct research on relevant issues. Dr. Niall Muldoon has an excellent track record and curriculum vitae, CV. I wish him well in his new position and I hope he will push the agenda that children in the State are treated with respect, equality and, above all, are given a chance to develop to the best of their ability so they can have a future in this country.

See this speech in context