Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

As we said previously in this Chamber on the day of that debate, we really are very lucky to have Dr. Niall Muldoon and his team. When he highlights an issue, he really does it because it needs to be highlighted. As we know, we have so many children living in direct provision, which includes a combination of children who are here as unaccompanied minors. That combination is the most heartbreaking and worrying because, obviously, they do not have an adult or family member looking out for them. Then, we have children who are here maybe with family, or some of their family, at least. It is really important that we are taking every step.

I particularly want to focus on what the Minister said regarding one designated or dedicated person in each centre, if I picked that up correctly, who is specifically for children and can go the centres to raise awareness. Is that something we currently have or is that something we are bringing in? The Minister might expand on that because it is a good idea and a very good point. That will alleviate many of the issues and difficulties.

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