Carol Nolan (Offaly, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish to speak on this amendment concerning notification. We did discuss it in detail on Committee Stage. This amendment takes into consideration that abuse could be occurring in the family unit. We have seen examples of that and we are all very aware of it. We also have seen examples of abuse that occurs outside the family unit. If we deny parents the right to be notified about their daughter, we could in effect be covering for a perpetrator outside that family unit. What do we do in those cases? Nowadays abuse is taken very seriously, rightly so. We have Tusla, and there is an onus on each and every one of us to report any suspected abuse, as well as on teachers, schools and so forth.

The majority of parents are good parents. I acknowledge there have been cases, as I have outlined, of abuse within the family unit but does that mean we should let a perpetrator get away? We are talking about a minor who might be in a vulnerable situation. As we all are aware, online grooming of minors is on the increase. There could be a case where a minor gets pregnant and feels very vulnerable. The right of those parents to know should not be denied. This is a very reasonable amendment based on common sense. As I have stated, we have taken into consideration that there are cases where parents cannot be notified. We are cognisant of that. However, we cannot let perpetrators outside of the family unit, or rather the immediate family unit, get away with abuse. We know that abuse has been covered up in the past.

There is much talk in this House about moving on and making our society better and safer for our young people, particularly our young girls. If we do not notify parents, perpetrators of abuse and paedophiles will get away. We cannot have that sort of system either. As legislators, we are asking for the right thing to be done. We are asking for reason and common sense to be implemented in this situation. This needs a common-sense approach. We cannot allow perpetrators or those who are involved in grooming girls online get away with a horrendous act that needs to be punished. We must make sure that no loopholes are given to that type of person.

See this speech in context