Jillian van Turnhout (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I would like to add my voice to those who were ashamed and horrified by what we saw on the recent RTE "Prime Time" programme. I want to update the Seanad that at a meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children this morning we decided to invite representatives of the HSE to a meeting next Tuesday to examine care home settings. I am sure all Oireachtas Members are welcome to attend. I advise the House about the meeting because we should have more people debating the issue. Early in the new year the committee plans to meet individuals, organisations and groups on the issue in order to have a wider and more proactive discussion about systemic issues, not just in Áras Attracta, and to provide recommendations and guidance. I would like to see the capacity legislation and advocacy service legislation progressed. I would also like to look at the potential role of the Human Rights and Equality Commissioner and the Ombudsman in order to see where those roles would be appropriate.
I raised the following issue in the Seanad a month ago and know that many Senators concur with my viewpoint on the issue of Childline and its funding. As we approach Christmas its funding situation is becoming more desperate. Childline has conducted a very public fundraising campaign for a vital listening service. The Irish Examinerhas run several articles this week on the importance of Childline's work and added to the voices calling on the Government to find a way to ensure the night service does not close down. Childline's night service is staffed. The majority of Childline's services are provided by volunteers but one cannot expect volunteers who have other jobs to staff the night time service. We also know that night time, by its very nature night time, is made up of the darkest hours. Are we saying that when a child picks up the courage to pick up a phone and say "I need help" that we will respond with "Please call back at a time that better suits us"?
Childline deals with issues of child abuse and neglect but it also deals with everyday issues such as loneliness. I have heard that children have telephoned Childline just to hear an adult be present in their lives. A volunteer told me that one Christmas Day a child rang because he wanted somebody else there when opening a present. Bullying is another issue which we have talked about here in the House. Who is a child supposed to reach out to if he or she is not getting help at home? Who does a child turn to when he or she needs help or guidance? Such children work up the courage to pick up the phone and call Childline.
I ask the Leader to convey to the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste the urgency of this issue because the service will close. On previous occasions Senators have come together as a Seanad on the issue of Childline and the missing children's hotline. This is an essential service if we really want to ensure that children's voices are heard and we that we do not say to them to call back at a more convenient time.