Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There will be much agreement about the State's dreadful history of institutional abuse. As my colleagues and many others have said, an enormous number of people were put into institutions against their will. Those institutions include mother and baby homes, institutional schools and all those places where this State has a dark history and where people were very badly treated. We all know the history of how badly this State has treated women. We welcome all the moves that are being made to rectify the situation as much as it can be rectified. It is possibly a matter of mitigating and looking after the needs that people have, particularly where health is involved. We are talking about people who have been through huge pain.

I would like to think the Government will work alongside the Opposition if we put forward amendments. There are obviously issues because there will be a financial aspect to some of the amendments, which creates a difficulty for us. I would like to think we will find a solution by whatever means.

Many have spoken about the fact that this scheme is limited to 139 institutions, which means a number have been excluded. That is not something we need to address. Whether we are talking about the enhanced medical card, those who are abroad or all those people who are now falling between stools, we must do our absolute best to deal with the situation. I agree with what many others have said. We have all spoken about people's particular narratives and history, the shameful way they were treated and how brutal life was in some of these institutions. That is very worthwhile because sometimes we can forget what we are talking about on an individual basis. We tend to think that we need a solution for people who have been wronged but some of those wrongs were God awful and are unforgivable.

Many mistakes have been made over many years. It is right that apologies are made by the Taoiseach and others in this House and that people hold up their hands to the wrongs the State has done. However, we need to find a mechanism for the follow-through that is often lacking. We all talked last week about the bravery and courage of the Stardust families in the face of what they were up against. When we are dealing with people who were in these institutions, we are talking about people who were absolutely wronged and who were on the periphery of society. That is the problem. People were put out of society and left on the periphery. They had no power. That is why it has taken so long, in some cases, to have any level of rectification in respect of the wrongs that were done. We need to get far better at this. We would also be far better if we could deal with the issues in front of us. If we tackle those difficulties, we will avoid creating situations whereby in 20 or 30 years' time, we will be making apologies for wrongs that are being done today or making apologies for situations where wrongs have been done and people still have not seen any element of justice or rectification.

We have to do our absolute best by recognising the wrongs that were done. We are all in agreement in that regard. We are all in agreement to some degree that we should do our absolute best to deliver those services to the people who have been negatively impacted by the State in some of its worst moments. We should do everything that can be done to ensure those survivors do not have to fight battles daily.

We can and should do better, and it is only right that we do. That is what people expect and why they are sometimes disappointed by what happens in this House. We do not necessarily tackle the issues in front of us. People say that this Government and many governments over many years have not had their backs even when everybody accepts there is an issue and that wrongs were done. In some cases, we are dealing with abject torture and disgraceful behaviour and it is only the individuals' own words that can do justice to it. However, it always takes too long and is too hard a battle and we need that not to be the case.

We all know the asks. They are out there now. We know what the legislation covers and does not cover. We need to bridge the gap and ensure that individuals are not once again put outside and retraumatised.

We know that over a long history, many wrongs have been done. As I said, those without power have always found it difficult. They have always needed to become advocates and activists, and to go above and beyond to bring any element of justice. We need to make it easier.

For the week that is in it, I will mention the legacy Bill. We all knew what the British Government had promised to do and it has followed through. We know the reasons the British Government has done it. There are still families who have questions they need answered. The legislation is about Britain drawing a line under its role in a dirty war. I am glad the State has taken an interstate case in respect of what is going on. I think of those in my constituency and the surrounding areas who have been impacted greatly. They include Hugh Watters and Jack Rooney, who died as a result of the Dundalk bombing on the same evening that Donnelly's Bar was attacked, and Seamus Ludlow. We are approaching the 50th anniversary of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. Not only have there been major failings by the British Government, there have also been failings by this State.

I reiterate that we need to do our absolute best in respect of rectification. We must ensure we can play our part in providing justice for those people who have gone too long without it.

None of us can do justice to the absolute travesty people were put through in residential institutions. As I said previously, we know their asks. We have to make sure we can follow through and deliver on all the asks that we can and, therefore, I would like to see us be solution-focused into the future and not once again traumatise people, particularly women, who have been through far too much already.

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