Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter, which only came into the public domain recently. I had no knowledge of it until it was reported in the newspapers.

With regard to records over which the Department has control, we have a number that relate to the former industrial and reformatory schools. They cover areas such as general inspection, medical inspection and certification. There are also registers which provide details of children who were admitted through the courts system as well as individual files on some of these children. The Department made available such records as were required for the work of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, CICA, which ultimately led to the Ryan report. The Department also provided personal records of many thousands of former residents who applied for such records under freedom of information legislation.

Apart from such records held by my Department, a significant volume of records are also held in the archives of the congregations that managed the schools. Indeed, such records were also sought and used in the work of CICA and the formulation of the Ryan report. The existence of such distinct sets of records held by the various congregations has been acknowledged by the State. They were obviously created, maintained and archived independently of the State. In such circumstances, my Department has never sought to take ownership of such records. While I understand that the question of the use and ownership of the records in question has been under discussion among various parties, this has only recently come to the attention of my Department.

I understand that a number of parties have expressed an interest in the retention, use and ownership of the records in question. It also appears that certain parties in question have sought independent legal services and that all involved have specific views on a resolution of the issue. It is important to emphasise that the State is not a party to these proceedings. This is not surprising given the State has not now, or at any previous time, had ownership or possession of the records in question. In such circumstances, where litigation is pending, it would be inappropriate for me to comment on how and where these records should be dealt with.

The Deputy raised specific questions about whether the State has the power to seize these documents. I do not know of any such power in my Department but I cannot be decisive on that issue because I do not know whether powers reside in another Department.

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