James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The child care law reporting project, an important project, does not have a statutory remit. It is permitted to report on child care proceedings under section 29 of the Child Care Act 1991. The amendment would provide for a definition of relevant court documents for the purposes of section 29 of the Child Care Act 1991. The section in question provides for the powers to report on child care proceedings before the courts, where it is likely that such reporting may assist in the better operation of the Act. Under regulations made under this section, the child care law reporting project has been examining cases before the courts over the recent past. All such reporting must be anonymised, as Senator van Turnhout pointed out.

Her proposed amendment would provide access to all documents lodged with the courts in child care proceedings. Such an amendment would not only apply to the child care law reporting project but to any future body given access to report on court proceedings in a similar fashion. In many child care cases before the courts, information of an extremely personal and sensitive nature is submitted. This may encompass everything from financial to psychological reports, reports on addiction issues and alleged cases of physical and/or sexual abuse which relate not only to the child but to their parents and wider family. The balance in providing access to such information must be carefully weighed. The potential for a positive impact in what an examination of such reports might yield for policy or operational gain must be considered against the right to privacy of the individual. This must be examined from a constitutional perspective, as well as under obligations under international treaties to which Ireland is a signatory. I remain to be convinced that the intrusion would be appropriate or proportional to intended potential gain.

I will keep an open mind on the matter and have sought, as a preliminary step, the views of Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, on the matter. An in-depth legal and policy examination of the issues associated with any such amendment would also be required. Were it deemed possible and desirable, and given the nature of the documents in question, a consultation with the stakeholders would also be required. With this in mind, I do not intend to accept this amendment.