Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Bhí faillí i ndiaidh faillí sa chás seo, gach faillí níos measa ná an ceann a chuaigh roimis - failure after failure, each failure potentially worse than the last. What Grace endured was appalling, shocking and, in truth, heartbreaking. If revelations this weekend regarding Tuam revealed that our failures regarding child protection have deep and institutional roots, then the case of Grace reminds us that our failures to the most vulnerable in our society continue right up to this day.

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She and her mother have been failed utterly by the State. I wish to express my concern about the way this has been handled by Government in the past few hours. It is unfortunate that the terms of reference have been published. I recognise that the Minister of State has taken on board observations from spokespersons. Due to the fact that the terms of references were published such a short time before this debate, however, it meant the main spokespersons only had a very brief period to look over them. That is not a critique of the terms of reference, with which I am generally satisfied. This is not, however, a good way of doing business. There is a precedent. We will now be potentially looking at expanding the terms of reference of another commission of investigation, which an awful lot of Deputies will be dissatisfied with it, as happened with the mother and baby homes. It is an example of what happens when we do not get the terms of reference right from the get-go. To ensure that the latter happens, there needs to be adequate time to scrutinise the terms of reference.

I contacted the Minister of State's office and I understand that amendments will not be taken on board. I am not sure when, if ever, a vote will be taken on this. Will the Minister of State clarify that particular point because the language of his contribution was to the effect that this is a motion and, presumably, amendments could be tabled in respect of it?

I want to express a concern about the terms of reference. It is the right approach to prioritise Grace but Part X is not explicit enough in guaranteeing that those other families and children who were in that care setting will get an investigation. It is unfair on the families because they will have to wait a year before they are given any guarantee their cases will be looked into after the conclusion of Part X. That section of the terms of reference needs to be strengthened in order to give those families reassurance and certainty that their cases will be looked into. The systematic issues in care in the south east also need to be looked at. I call on the Minister of State to give a more explicit commitment in the terms of reference in that regard.

I want to reinforce what my colleague, Deputy Ó Caoláin, said on the points raised in the Dignam report, which has largely been followed in the terms of reference and rightly so. The extraordinary and quite shocking allegation that files may have been destroyed, that there was a fear that files would be destroyed or that threats were made about funding on the back of what the whistleblowers were coming forward and saying needs to be a very substantial part of the inquiry.

It is good that the Chairman of the Committee on Children and Youth Affairs is here. It is unfortunate that the Minister is not. This is an issue that relates very substantially to child protection. We need to begin a conversation because this is not the first allegation in recent weeks or months about the way child protection and more recent matters relating to Tusla have been handled. This matter needs to be part of a broader discussion about how Tusla and all our authorities dealing with child protection go about their work. The Devine and Resilience Ireland reports contain 30 recommendations on improving procedures in this regard. The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs and the Minister for Health should outline what has been implemented since then.

The final point I want to make is on foster care. Beidh mé gairid anseo. Foster carers play an enormously important role and without them our care system would absolutely collapse. They cover approximately 93% of all children in care. We owe them a great debt of gratitude. The Irish Association of Social Workers has issued a call in respect of the need for a better framework and better structures to support it in its work but also to ensure the children in those placements are protected. I echo the calls-----

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