Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

This amendment relates to the provision for any additional institutions in the Schedule in the context of relevant institutions. I have a concern I indicated to the Minister, which is that the Bill at present provides that the Minister may: "provide for the insertion in the schedule of any institution that was established or operated for the purpose of providing care to children in which children were placed and resident and in respect of which a public body has or had a regulatory or inspection function." Again, I just want to ensure that nothing falls out.For example, there were gaps during those periods when there were not proper legal practices in adoptions. Informal bodies operating between institutions were also involved in adoptions. I do not believe that the provision in this amendment will be needed much, but I wish to ensure that everything is in place. My amendment seeks to clarify that the Minister can provide for the insertion in the Schedule of any institution regardless of whether a public body had a regulatory or inspectorial function over it. This is meant to ensure that there are no gaps and that bodies that were involved in the care of children but were not subject to regulation or inspection by a public body do not fall outside the remit of this legislation or that the Minister might be blocked from addressing them.

The Minister indicated his confidence that there would almost always be a situation where a public body had a regulatory or inspectorial function regardless of whether it exercised that function effectively, but I wish to expand this provision. It is better to have it and not need to use it than to need it and not have it. I am leaving the section largely as is and only adding the simple phrase "regardless of whether". I do not know why we should not insert a more expansive framework to give us that scope. The layers of the architecture involved are only coming out into the light now. They were around for a long time. Consider how long it took us from the point that cases of illegal adoptions from St. Patrick's Guild were flagged to when we began dealing with the issue. Neither the Minister nor I have a full sense of the architecture that existed in the illegal adoption and inappropriate care of children. This amendment would widen the Bill a little and give the Minister, or a future Minister, the powers instead of having to seek them at later point.