Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)

Many Members on both sides have spoken today about the importance of child protection. I agree with the Member who said this was the most important issue for us. If we are serious, we must ask the Minister for Health and Children to put the child protection guidelines on a statutory footing and to introduce mandatory reporting. While we fail to do that, our children remain at risk and let us not fool ourselves otherwise. The guidelines will protect all professionals and whistleblowers in reporting so that our children are safe in the future.

I am also concerned -----