Ciarán Cannon (Fine Gael)

The context in which a debate takes place more often than not has a major influence on the outcome of that debate. In the aftermath of the publication of the Ryan report last May, we were galvanised as a nation in our resolve to ensure no child would ever suffer the kind of horrific abuse described in that report. We said: "Never again and not on our watch." We in the modern and enlightened Ireland would not tolerate such atrocities. We laid the blame for this abuse at the door of generations past.

Tomorrow is the first anniversary of the publication of the report yet what has really changed in the past 12 months? While there has been much hand wringing with ambitious commitments made, not one Bill has been passed to strengthen children's rights. Ultimately, it is all a question of priorities and protecting children but it does not seem to be a priority for the Government. If protecting our children was not a priority in the immediate aftermath of the Ryan and Murphy reports or in the aftermath of the deaths of children in the care of the HSE, we must accept that child protection will never likely be a priority for Fianna Fáil or the Green Party.

The Minister of State continues to respond with assertions that he and his Department have either commissioned a report, are awaiting the publication of one or are about to act on one. The saddest part of this whole saga is the conclusive proof that the Government is more than capable of swift and decisive action when it feels the need to take such action. In September 2008, the House sat through one night to pass legislation guaranteeing bank deposits. We drafted and passed in several months the complex legislation underpinning NAMA. Despite this, we are seemingly incapable of affording the same priority through far simpler legislation to ensure the protection of children.

The Children First guidelines were published in 1999. Eleven years later these guidelines have yet to be put on a statutory footing. For example, the guidelines require each local health office to draw up local procedures to give guidance on implementing the guidelines. Eleven years later, half of local health offices do not have proper local procedures or have only recently drawn them up. Eleven years later there is no 24-hour access available for gardaí or social workers to the child protection notification system. It is particularly shocking, in light of the revelations of the past decade, that the Ombudsman's report documents the continuing failure of the HSE and the Garda to operate joint liaison and documentary arrangements in many parts of the State in respect of allegations of child abuse.

Eleven years later, the rate of social workers in this country is one to every 1,800 persons while in Northern Ireland it is one to every 660 persons. Even the social workers we do have are not allocated on a needs basis. For example, the Ombudsman's report tells us that County Galway had the highest number of reports to social workers in the State while Dún Laoghaire had the 31st highest. Despite this, both had the same number of social work posts.

Eleven years later we learn that an industrial dispute which began in 2002 continues to affect the implementation of Children First. It has never been resolved. Not alone that, it has also been kept secret by the HSE and the trade union, IMPACT.

So abysmal has been the HSE's and the Government's performance on this issue that when PA Consulting finalised its recent report on children in care, it felt obliged to give it the title "Putting Children First and Meaning It". Then we learned the HSE had no intention of making this report public. This report and the Ombudsman for Children both highlight major inadequacies in our child care services.

I acknowledge the Minister of State, Deputy Barry Andrews, is determined to address these inadequacies. That determination must now be matched by swift action. The Ryan report implementation plan commits to drafting legislation by this December to provide that all staff employed by the State and in agencies in receipt of Exchequer funding will have a duty to comply with the Children First guidelines. The deadline for delivery of this commitment is the end of this year.

If it is to be met, legislation must be drafted without delay. It is now almost the beginning of June and time is rapidly running out. The Bill should be published with enough time to allow for consultation with relevant stakeholders, including professionals working with children and non-governmental organisations. If the deadline of December this year is not met, then whatever credibility the Minister of State has in this area and whatever trust is placed in his role will surely evaporate into thin air. Earlier, I remarked that tomorrow is the first anniversary of the publication of the Ryan report. Would it not be a most fitting marking of that anniversary if the Minister of State, Deputy Andrews, were to announce a date for the referendum on children's rights? Though he has 24 hours left to make such an announcement, I do not expect it will happen. The Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children has done the State some valuable service by providing the basis for the referendum. The Minister has €3 million in his budget to cover the cost of the referendum. What more appropriate gesture of solidarity and love could we extend to our 1 million children than to enshrine their right to a happy and carefree childhood in our country's Constitution? The Minister of State and the Government should recall their own human reaction to the publication of the Ryan report one year ago. They should recall their revulsion and horror, but above all they should recall their steely determination at that time to protect our children in the future.

I recall the words of the Minister of State, Deputy Andrews, in the introduction to the Ryan report implementation plan:

There are many reasons why we were shocked by the Ryan Report. Not least of these was the sense that more could have been done and that many of us ignored warning signs. We need to challenge ourselves as a society to do more to protect children... The sense of indifference that was all too obvious in the 20th century needs to be replaced by a sense of engagement.

It is now time to challenge and engage, but above all to act.