Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for bringing this very important issue before the Oireachtas and for the clarity with which she has presented the case and outlined her personal circumstances. She speaks on behalf of thousands of people and articulates the need for the State to meet their needs. I am taking this Adjournment matter on behalf of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Charles Flanagan.
Following the Government's announcement last week to establish a statutory commission of investigation into the mother and baby homes, the Minister has this morning announced a series of arrangements to provide public access to further information and counselling services for those needing support regarding these issues. These services are operational from today, and full details, together with an update on the cross-departmental work of establishing the commission, are available on the website of the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, www.dcya.gov.ie. The Minister is conscious of the demand for information following the recent disturbing revelations about mother and baby homes. Last week, he directed his officials to work with the HSE on arrangements to ensure that the HSE national information line can assist people seeking information or details of available support. Those seeking such information may telephone the national information line on 1850 24 18 50, Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
There is also an out-of-hours professional counselling and support service where those affected can contact the Connect free telephone service and talk in confidence with a trained counsellor. Connect is an out-of-hours service which is available from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. It normally operates from Wednesday to Sunday, but is currently operating seven evenings per week as part of the response to these issues. The Connect out-of-hours service is contactable at Freefone 1800 477 477 from the Republic of Ireland and 00 800 477 477 77 from Northern Ireland and the UK. The HSE national counselling service is also available to assist those affected. It is a professional, confidential counselling and psychotherapy service that is available free of charge in all regions for adults who have experienced trauma and abuse in childhood, with priority given to adult survivors of institutional abuse. Callers to the HSE National Information Line will be connected to a local service.
The Government is committed to providing as much information as possible to adoptees who seek information regarding their identity. The Government fully appreciates that the desire to know one's identity, or to re-establish contact with a child, is very fundamental, human and entirely reasonable. The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs is pursuing a range of measures, both legislative and administrative, in the area of adoption information and tracing. The constitutional and legal barriers to providing access to adoption records, including birth certificates, without the consent of the birth mother give rise to the need for careful drafting of legislative proposals, and this important work is receiving priority attention from the Minister, Deputy Charles Flanagan. Any legislation in this area is subject to legal and constitutional complexities, balancing the right to identity with a parent's right to privacy where prior parental consent has not been forthcoming. The Minister is committed to going as far as possible through legislation to facilitate improved access.
A great deal can also be done operationally to support any new legislative scheme through, for example, support and counselling to address fears about giving consent to the release of records. The Minister will, as soon as possible, finalise legislative proposals and submit a general scheme and heads of the adoption (information and tracing) Bill to Government. Under the provisions of the Bill, a national tracing service will be established, the operation of which will be subject to guidelines to be set out in regulations. The Bill will also provide for the placing of the national contact preference register on a statutory basis.
Subject to Government approval, it is the Minister's intention to refer the general scheme to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children for its consideration, where the competing issues can be fully debated. It is envisaged that the committee's consideration will include invitations to advocacy groups and interested parties to outline their views. The Minister has indicated that he is looking forward to having an opportunity to engage with Members on the complex issues arising in the proposed legislation. The Minister has asked me to convey his regret that he was unable to attend the Seanad and to thank Senator Power for raising this urgent and important issue. The Minister has indicated that he intends to meet with Opposition spokespersons and a number of key advocacy groups next week on the matter of mother and baby homes.