James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I reiterate the point made by the Deputy that these are indeed very vulnerable children. Tusla has taken this issue very seriously indeed, so much so that the chief operations officer himself, Mr. Fred McBride, has taken direct control, as the Deputy acknowledged.

As regards the whole issue, many lessons have been learned from the Laois-Offaly situation and a similar approach has been taken here in terms of bringing in additional resources to address the backlog of cases. That will ensure a uniformity of approach so that protocols are implemented in full and we have a safe service for these most vulnerable children.

There is no question but that, as a new organisation, Tusla faces some of the challenges faced by the HSE from which it sprang, including ensuring a uniformity of approach across the service. It is also ensuring that frontline staff, in the main social workers in this case, have the necessary supports they need in information technology. A business case has been put to us concerning that as well.

Without any shadow of doubt, serious problems have been identified in this report. The plan put forward by Tusla to deal with these deficiencies has been accepted by HIQA and that plan is on track to deliver within defined timeframes.

As regards the Deputy's failure to get answers to his questions until he managed to reach the chief operations officer, this is something I will have to inquire into further. I do not believe that is satisfactory. Public representatives should be able to obtain full information in situations like these, in order to address concerns and reassure their constituents.

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