Michael Mullins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I hope Senator Higgins is wrong when she says that nobody can be prosecuted as a result of what we saw on television last night. The people who ill treated the residents and perpetrated the type of crimes we saw last night should face the full rigour of the law.

It is particularly sad that we, as a people, do not seem to have learned from the lessons of Leas Cross and other cases of institutional abuse that we have seen over the years. Today is international human rights day and I hope that last night's programme will act as a wake-up call for us to ensure what happened in Áras Attracta will never be allowed to happen here again. It is worrying that we cannot give an assurance to people who have vulnerable relatives in various care homes and institutions in this State that such abuse does not happen in other places. A thorough investigation is required to ensure that proper procedures and proper care is administered. The programme called into question the management of the Áras Attracta facility and its recruitment process needs to be look at as well. How could the people, who behaved in the way we saw on television last night, have gotten through a recruitment process and be deemed suitable to work in a care institution that looks after the most vulnerable people?

Finally, I wish to comment on the NCT situation that has been raised by Senators O'Donovan and Colm Burke. There is a simple solution to the problem. If somebody has applied for an NCT and received written confirmation of a date for a test, however far forward it might be, then it should be deemed evidence that they are in the process of having their NCT carried out and that it is not their fault that the certificate is not on display. This is an administrative matter which could be simply resolved and thus would avoid people incurring penalty points, as has been outlined in the House.