Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I will give that assurance again. The Senator is absolutely correct in saying there is a deep commitment by the Department at ministerial level and at official level to resolve this. The Donegal and Mayo scheme was to set a template for other counties. The fact that we now have an enhanced scheme gives the opportunity for Clare County Council to work with the Department to ensure that County Clare is included as soon as is practicable. That is what we all want to achieve. We want to give some assurances and hope to these families, coming up to Christmas, that they can now see a way forward with a scheme that is very expansive with 100% redress, albeit there is a sliding scale. There are many good provisions within that scheme and I believe families in County Clare certainly will welcome this once they are included. What I would ask the Senator to take back is to work with Clare County Council in order that Clare County Council engages, now that the enhanced scheme has landed, and that we try to move this forward as soon as we can.