Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank both Senators for giving me the opportunity to provide an update on some of these matters. As they know, I received the report of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes on 30 October. As Senator Fitzpatrick mentioned, the report has been years in the making and survivors want to see it published soon. I share that wish. It is important that this report be published so that all of us can collectively understand better the experiences of the women who were in mother and baby homes and the experiences of the children who were born there.

Once the Government has given approval for publication of the report, I will engage directly with former residents as key stakeholders who are central to these issues and provide them with the details of the report and the proposed next steps. I am acutely conscious of the anticipation experienced by former residents and their families awaiting the publication of this report and I reassure Senators that there will be no undue delay in bringing the report forward for publication.

I have already been in direct contact with a considerable number of former residents by telephone and, in line with commitments already in place in this regard, my Department will make contact directly with former residents through existing communication channels to inform them of these matters before they are brought into the public domain. There is already a dedicated telephone information line available within my Department. Those details are available on the Department's website for people seeking further information on related matters. Once the publication is announced, these details will be widely advertised on various platforms to again inform key stakeholders of the details. There is also a telephone line already available for people seeking details of counselling support available to those affected by these issues. All of these numbers have been provided to former residents and their supporters and will be publicised on the websites of my Department and the HSE. My officials have liaised with the national counselling service to ensure that capacity is primed to respond to any increased demand for the service which may arise on foot of publication of the report, both during office hours and in respect of an out-of-hours service.

I want to be as clear as possible on the matter of records. The archive of the commission of investigation is still in the commission's possession. The Government's intention is to publish the commission's report as soon as possible. As such, the archive will not be transferred to my Department prior to the publication of the report. This means that I will not be able to provide copies of personal data to survivors in advance of receiving the archive. The archive will be transferred to my Department by 28 February next, as provided for in the legislation. Thereafter, my Department will be able to process subject access requests from people who want access to their records. My Department is working intensively to ensure that it is properly resourced to handle subject access requests and can provide people with as much personal data as possible.

I cannot make an absolute commitment that the Department will be able to provide unredacted records in all cases. As we discussed during the debates, the right to personal data under Article 15 of the general data protection regulation, GDPR, is not absolute. Release of personal data must not adversely affect the rights and freedoms of others, and this test must always be applied when considering whether to release personal data. It is a legal requirement to apply this test in each case and in some circumstances, this is likely to mean that certain records may be redacted or partly redacted.

In all my engagements on the commission's records, I have always been clear that applying GDPR will not resolve all issues around access to information. This issue underlines the importance of enacting robust information and tracing legislation. I have given a commitment in this regard to bring forward fresh proposals on information and tracing next year. The intention is that the legislation will support individuals to access more information than is currently accessible to them under GDPR or the Freedom of Information Act. I am committed to this legislation to ensure that we can provide people with the identity information they need, with the necessary wraparound supports for all involved. I will meet with my officials about the specific legislation later today and look forward to working with all Senators in advancing the legislation.