Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I want the record to be clear. My Department provides no funding to St. John Ambulance as a youth organisation.

I met a survivor who explained his experience. I subsequently met the board of St. John Ambulance to discuss both its current child protection procedures, which Tusla has assured me are in compliance with Children First, and a review of the historical cases. I encouraged and put pressure on the board members to undertake that independent review of historical practices. That independent review is now taking place. I subsequently engaged with them to ensure that is properly publicised, recognising that St. John Ambulance is an organisation that has been in existence for a long time.

Many people have passed through it. Since that, there has been better publication of it on its social media, Twitter and Facebook. I have also published a number of press releases from my Department speaking about this review and encouraging people to participate and to come forward. Through other sources, other complainants or other questions about St. John Ambulance have been made known to me. I have made sure to put them through to the right connections to get in touch with Professor Geoffrey Shannon.

I have absolutely confidence in Geoffrey Shannon to get to the bottom of this. I also think that if he believes he is not getting the co-operation he needs, he will say that. He will not allow himself to be messed around by any organisation. He is far too experienced. If we get to a situation where this organisation is not co-operating, this will be called out. We have to give the person who is an expert in undertaking these sorts of investigations the discretion to undertake the work he is doing. This is a detailed piece of analysis, talking to people some who as we know have been deeply impacted. These are not phonecalls and it is right that these take place properly. I have confidence in Geoffrey Shannon, but if he comes to me or to my Department and says there is a real problem, I will be happy to engage on that point.

See this speech in context