Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach and welcome the Minister. I will start, as many others have, by paying tribute and commending all of the women and children who came forward and shared their stories. They should never have had to do it but when they took that step to disclose the most personal and harrowing stories, the least they could have expected was to be believed. This week has been distressing and emotional for many. Survivors, their families and their representatives slowly are making their way through the report but it seems that the more they read, the more that, once again, that sense of being betrayed is coming to the fore.

Much has already been said about the manner in which this report was published, the webinar that was delivered like a sermon from the pulpit rather than a survivor-centred inclusive briefing, and the fact that copies of the document reached newspapers and elected representatives before the survivors themselves. We can put those mistakes aside because the bigger disappointment was yet to come, that is, in the executive summary's narrative and excusatory tone. I note the absence of blame being levelled on the State or church when we know that the history of both institutions in this country is one of a perverse fascination with the control of women's bodies and their sexuality. Societal norms have changed but, by God, the State and church fought tooth and nail to stop them. There were those who spoke out. There were those who tried to reform, but when one has the State and the church working hand in glove to stifle the conversation, what chance did they have? Certainly, what chance did the mothers have?

Much has also been said about the report's conclusions on adoption. The Commission states, on the one hand, that it found very little evidence that children were forcibly taken from their mothers but then goes on to state it accepts that mothers did not have much choice.

The conclusion also flies in the face of the confidential committee and the testimony of the mothers. One would have to ask the question, what is wrong with this State when women and survivors come forward, give their evidence to the commission of inquiry and then their word is not good enough? How is it that we can tune in day after day all week and hear survivors and their families talk about their direct experiences of these institutions, pour their souls out over the national airwaves, and then we can see a report that goes to gaslight them, that tells them that what they knew happened to them did not happen to them.

Over the coming months, no doubt there will be much more analysis of the findings of this report. It will be examined by historians, lawyers and advocacy groups, and rightly so. The report is just one narrative. It is an offensive one, in my view, but it is only one, and there are survivors, groups and academics out there right now who are determined to correct that.

Today, I want to focus the minds of this House, as many others have, on what the Minister and what we, as legislators, need to do. Survivors deserve action. They deserve to have their trust in politicians restored and in order for that to happen, we need to have action urgently.

There cannot be a repeat of the mistakes of previous reports and inquiries. The full collaborative forum report was never published and its recommendations have yet to be implemented. What we need to hear today is that survivors will be given full access to their birth certificates and records. There are no more excuses. When every GDPR expert in the country was telling this Government that it was wrong on the archive, it dug its heels in until public uproar could not be ignored anymore and it backed down. When the fact that Ireland was a complete outlier in the world in denying survivors access to their identity, successive Governments hid behind unpublished Attorney General's advice.

I am glad to hear that the current Attorney General has ruled out the need for a referendum to access birth certificates. My colleague, Deputy Funchion, has today published legislation that would facilitate adoptees accessing their birth certificates. It is a fundamental human right to know who you are. Nobody is expecting that the rights to access documents about who you are will somehow magically guarantee a happy ever after ending - by God, survivors of those institutions know that better than anyone else - but it will at least put an end to their othering. It will finally recognise their right to self.I know the Minister met with the children's committee earlier regarding a redress scheme and I hope progress can be made without delay because it is imperative that we have a redress scheme that is fit for purpose, that is accessible to all who need to access it and that does not seek to silence through gagging orders. I also hope the Minister will ensure that church organisations will make significant contributions to that scheme and there will be no room this time for them to abscond from that. Even if it means shaking them by their ankles until their pockets are empty, there can be no wriggle room for the churches this time. I also support calls for GlaxoSmithKline to pay compensation for their role in experimentation on children.

I would like to hear that health insurance cards will be issued without delay, that counselling services and support will be made available and enhanced housing provided, that the burials Bill will address the concerns of survivors and that all 182 identifiable institutions will be investigated for mass burial plots and a dignified exhumation process facilitated. These are only some of the tangible measures the Minister and we, as legislators, can implement. I assure the Minister my party will not be found wanting when it comes to working with him on those matters.

I thank again those who have spoken out and laid bare their pain and suffering, their experiences and their truth. I say to those who may never have spoken out and chose instead to silently carry their own story that they are not forgotten. They too did nothing wrong and deserve so much better from the State. The legacy of the State towards women is a shameful one but the women of Ireland will be silenced no more. They now have the support of wider society. When the archives were to be sealed, society rallied behind the women and survivors. Within days of this report being published, 25,000 people signed up to the access to records petition because the days of church and State control over our bodies, our sexuality and our right to information are over. Once the wall of silence has been broken, truth pushes forth like an unstoppable geyser.