Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister. Together the Ryan and Murphy reports make for horrendous reading and represent a shameful part of our heritage. Collectively, we have to feel ashamed. When we look back on our glory days, our heritage and literary past, we cannot deny that this sorry chapter is as much a part of our heritage and has to be faced up to. Just as the German people faced up to horrendous crimes of huge proportions in the past, we have to face up to this issue and accept our collective guilt and shame. It is, tragically, part of our heritage and inheritance. There is no avoiding that fact.

The biblical phrase "Suffer the little children to come unto me" comes to mind. The individuals who abused children stand condemned. Their crimes and breaches of trust are unacceptable and unpardonable. The parts of the State apparatus, institutions and bodies, which were complicit in the cover-up of the abuse must stand condemned also. That is what I meant by the words "collective guilt and shame". Many of us showed a lack of concern for children on the margins. Children of all social classes and groups were victims and trust was broken. To a degree, we did not show enough concern for more vulnerable children, all of which makes us guilty collectively.

As we solve the problem, we have to focus on the vast majority of good priests and religious who have done very good work. In many cases they have substituted for inadequate social and State services. They have been tremendous pastors on an individual basis as people of God and followers of Christ. They deserve our admiration. They are vulnerable today and another set of victims because they feel ashamed and a misplaced guilt, as many of us do when we blame ourselves for not doing something. Those who turned a blind eye and were aware of what was happening stand condemned. However, there are many good priests who deserve our thoughts, prayers and recognition. We should salute their good work, what they stand for and thank them. Many times they have done what the State should have been doing. They are great people.

When we look at our collective shame, institutional and individual wrongdoing and identify the good done by many priests, the question which arises is what will happen in the future. I am interested in the Minister's reply in that regard, as it will not be enough to just condemn what has happened. Steps have to be taken to ensure there will no be repetition and that there will be openness and transparency.

A number of initiatives were taken of which I am aware and which are identified in the report. These included the 1977 to 1983 guidelines on non-accidental injury to children; the 1980 to 1997 guidelines on the identification and management of non-accidental injury to children; the 1987 child abuse guidelines; the Children First guidelines of 1999; the duty of care guidelines of 2002; and the trust in care guidelines published in 2005. All of these documents need to be enforced. We need to enforce the legislation and guidelines in this area. We also need to provide backup, which will be important in the context of budgetary constraints. We should not reduce the number of staff working in this area or our vigilance in the identification of problems. It is important that we debate the issues raised and recognise our guilt in this matter.