Rebecca Moynihan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 82:

In page 31, line 35, to delete "next of kin" and substitute "relative".

Amendment No. 82 seeks to delete the provision that a qualifying relative in respect of a relevant person must be the next of kin, replacing it with a provision that he or she must only be a relative. Currently the Bill provides that a qualifying relative for the purposes of seeking early life information of a relevant person who died in an institution specified in the Schedule must be a next of kin of that person, rather than just a relative, to seek early life information under section 27. This could lead to scenarios where a relative such as a sibling may not be able to access the early life information of another sibling due to the next of kin not seeking such information.

We are going to withdraw amendment No. 83. Amendment No. 133 seeks to delete the line ", where such persons are deceased," in the Title relating to the release of information. This amends the Preamble, which in its current form is hasty, ambiguous and exclusionary. The Bill currently excludes people in two ways: first, by how it defines people who are eligible to access information; and second, how it defines records that are considered relevant. The Preamble does both. The inclusion of "where such persons are deceased" in certain circumstances defeats the purpose of the legislation, which is to make the information available to affected persons. The use of conditional language and narrow definitions will have a significant impact, not only on the type of information that is available but on those who can access it.

Amendment No. 134 seeks to delete the line "in certain circumstances" in the Title relating to the access to records by a relevant person's relative. This amends the Preamble, which in its current form does both. Where such persons are deceased, the line "in certain circumstances" contradicts the overall purpose of the legislation, which is to make information available to affected persons. The use of conditional language and narrow definitions will have a significant impact not only on the type of information that is available but also on those who can access it.