Maria Corrigan (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister of State and I thank the Cathaoirleach for the opportunity to raise this very important matter on the Adjournment.

A couple of weeks ago I tabled a matter on the Adjournment regarding the number of children who have gone missing from the care of the HSE. I received a response on behalf of the Minister for Health and Children that was really quite alarming. While full figures for the years 2006-08 were not available, the figures that were available for 2000-06 and the incomplete figures for 2006-08 indicated that approximately 397 children remain missing from the care of the HSE. All of these, with the exception of one child, I understand, are unaccompanied non-national minors. I am very concerned that these children are extraordinarily vulnerable. They do not have any families to speak up for them. They do not have any links with or ties to the country and therefore have not established relationships that would allow people to advocate on their behalf and continuously urge the authorities to locate them and be assured they are safe.

What is particularly alarming is that while it is accepted a number may claim to be unaccompanied, when they come into the care of they HSE, they tend to abscond in order to join up with family members. That appears to account for a certain number, but we are not sure how many. I presume some of those numbers may be for children who are located or whose whereabouts are accounted for.

It now appears that a number of these children are being trafficked into Ireland, either for the purposes of child labour or the sex trade. I am aware that a number of investigations are underway at present by the Garda Síochána into some such incidences. It is really important that we as Members of the Oireachtas speak up for these children and that we ensure their safety and whereabouts are kept to the forefront in everybody's mind. I welcome the new joint national protocol which the Minister indicated was signed in April to ensure that the Garda works in conjunction with the HSE to locate every child who has gone missing.

I would appreciate any update the Minister of State might give regarding the effectiveness of this as well as any update on the measures that have been undertaken by the Garda to find these children. Most importantly, there is a danger that where so many children can go missing without there being much public awareness of the phenomenon, that a false message could be sent out to the effect that Ireland is a soft target for trafficking, and this obviously cannot be let happen. I would welcome any update the Minister of State can provide.