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

The Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes made significant findings about the failings of the State and religious bodies, which together ran mother and baby and county home institutions. The Government believes that all relevant parties have a collective responsibility to respond to the legacy of these institutions.

In May, the Government approved my proposal to appoint Ms Sheila Nunan to act on my behalf in leading negotiations with religious bodies that had a historical involvement with mother and baby institutions. This was with a view to securing a financial contribution towards the cost of the payment scheme and it followed on from a series of meetings I held with the congregations and other religious bodies. These negotiations, while ongoing, are being treated as confidential. A full report will be provided to the Government once the negotiations are concluded.

With respect to the pharmaceutical companies, following the publication of the commission of investigation’s final report, I had a meeting with Glaxo Smith Kline, GSK, the lead entity in many trials, and conveyed my view that all relevant parties have a moral and ethical obligation to take appropriate action in response to the report. I urged them to consider the failures laid bare in the commission’s report and respond appropriately, given their corporate responsibilities. Ultimately, it is a matter for GSK to decide what action it takes or remedy it offers, having considered the commission’s findings. I am aware that GSK has since publicised arrangements for persons wishing to access personal information which may be contained in their corporate archives.

Intensive work is under way to establish the administrative systems and structures required to open the payment scheme to applications. The conclusion of this work is an absolute priority for me and the Department and my officials are working to ensure the scheme can open in quarter 1 of 2024.

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