Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The reason I stated that the Minister's response made the situation worse is because it was not accurate. We have a new departure now in that, for the first time on the record of this House, the reviewers' work is being questioned. It is being hinted that they went outside the terms of reference, as if it was their fault. That is a new thing, which was not mentioned previously. We have seen the sequence of events, which were the subject of rigorous scrutiny by the two internationally renowned professionals who tried to get the report corrected and tested for accuracy. It is patently untrue that they did not check the factual accuracy and they gave the board and director multiple opportunities to comment on the situation. They asked repeatedly to return to staff and, at a day-long meeting on 20 December 2016, they met with the chair and the director in Liverpool where they agreed a plan for the next steps and for revisions, as well as giving further opportunities for the chair and the director to come back. They did not come back, however, and despite the fact that further contact was initiated by the reviewers in January, February and March, there was no indication in any of those that steps were taken by Oberstown to facilitate their requests to debrief staff as had been agreed.

We have a huge problem here. I have said it before and I will say it again. If these two gentlemen were based in Ireland they would not be treated like this, not to mention the children who got lengthy jail sentences as a result of an offence that occurred in that institution and which, if we had the full facts, might have had a different outcome.

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