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

I acknowledge the central role of the survivors affected by the Shannon report, who advocated for their right to be heard and for the harm that was done to them to be acknowledged. It is through their tireless activism that we have a report that is a testament to the truth as they have told us all along. I have had extensive and valuable engagements with Mick Finnegan since becoming Minister and I remain available to him and any other survivor.

While we have spoken of the bravery of survivors in this case, it should not be their duty to seek organisational reviews. When reports of abuse are made to an organisation, within an organisation, those reports should be promptly referred to Tusla. We must all recognise the further harm that can be done if reports of abuse are not treated with sensitivity and transparency. I urge all those who work with children to take note of the findings of this report and to consider how their services value and respect the rights of children to be safe and protected.

It is clear that St. John Ambulance Ireland fell far short of these obligations when it first learned of the allegations of sexual abuse made against members. The report into the response to the allegations of abuse by Dr. Shannon details how St. John Ambulance did not comply with Children First guidance in place at the time the first allegation was made and how the organisation was paralysed, in the review's own words, by the initial response. The commissioner of St. John Ambulance Ireland has confirmed to me in writing that St. John Ambulance accepts in full the findings and recommendations of the report. St. John Ambulance has also prepared a detailed response document outlining how the organisation will address the findings. In addition, three members of the current board of St. John Ambulance have indicated their intention to resign.

I welcome St. John Ambulance's acceptance of the report's findings and the willingness to make very necessary changes. It is extremely regrettable, however, that it required an independent review process, along with the continued activism of survivors, to bring about an acceptance of the requirement for change within St. John Ambulance. As an independent organisation that does not receive funding from Tusla or the Government, there was no external process by which a review into the organisation could be instigated. Instead, the Shannon review came about as a result of advocacy from survivors, input from my Department and the pressure I was able to exert as Minister.

The Children First Act and guidance are intended to empower service providers, members of the public and all people working with and caring for children to recognise and confront suspected child abuse. These instruments, in particular the Children First national guidance, were available to St. John Ambulance in the period covered by the review. Unlike previous reviews of child abuse within organisations, failure to address the abuse was not a consequence of inadequate legislation or an inadequate policy environment. Tusla has had a statutory duty under the Child Care Act 1991 to promote the welfare of children where not receiving adequate care and protection. In doing so it relies heavily on individuals reporting concerns about children in accordance with Children First: National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children, from 2017, and the Children First Act 2015.

Children First national guidance has been in place since 1999, before the commencement of the Children First Act, and was fully revised in 2017 to include reference to the provisions of the Act. The guidance sets out definitions of abuse and signs for its recognition. It explains how reports about reasonable concerns of child abuse or neglect should be made by the general public and professionals to Tusla. It also sets out safeguarding best practice to assist any organisation providing services to children to create a safe environment.

The Children First Act, which was fully commenced in December 2017, provides for a number of key child protection measures and can be best summarised as having three key elements. The first is that the Act provides for mandatory reporting of child protection concerns by key professionals, including teachers, gardaí and healthcare professionals. Under the Act, mandated persons are required to report child protection concerns at or above a defined threshold to Tusla. Mandated persons are people who have contact with children and families and who, because of their qualification, training or employment role, are in a key position to help protect children from harm. The list of mandated persons is set out in Schedule 2 to the Act.

While the Children First Act does not impose criminal sanctions on mandated persons who fail to make a report to Tusla, there are a number of administrative actions Tusla can take if it emerges that a mandated person did not make a report and a child was subsequently left at risk or harmed. Overall, there is a need for a reasonable and proportionate approach in this area. While it is expected that persons mandated to report will meet their statutory obligations without the necessity to impose criminal sanctions for non-reporting, there are criminal sanctions for withholding information from the Garda.

The second key element is that the Children First Act places specific obligations on particular organisations that provide relevant services to children and young people, including a requirement to keep children safe from harm while they are using the service, to carry out a risk assessment and to develop child safeguarding statements. This is a written statement that sets out the service provided and the principles and procedures in place to ensure as much as possible that a child or young person using the service is safe from harm. Providers of relevant services are obliged to provide a copy of their child safeguarding statement on request to Tusla, to a parent or guardian of a child availing of the service or to requesting members of the public. Tusla has established a child safeguarding compliance unit to support the implementation of this provision. This unit maintains a register of non-compliance for service providers who fail to provide a copy of their child safeguarding statement to Tusla when requested to do so. Members of the public with concerns about child safeguarding statements can bring those concerns to the attention of Tusla. St. John Ambulance Ireland is a relevant service as defined by this Act.

The third key element of the Children First Act was establishing the Children First interdepartmental implementation group, on which each Government Department, Tusla, the HSE and An Garda Síochána is represented. That group has been established on a statutory footing. Overall, the Children First Act represents an important addition to the legal framework for child protection in Ireland and helps to ensure that child protection concerns are brought to the attention of Tusla without delay. Under Irish law, criminal investigations are carried out by An Garda Síochána, which then submits a report to the DPP. The DPP co-operates independently of the Minister for Justice and the Department of Justice, then decides whether or not someone should be prosecuted and, if so, for what crime. I urge both the DPP and the Commissioner to consider in detail the Shannon review with regard to any actions that may now be taken in response to the report's findings. Tusla is available to support anyone - mandated persons, organisations working with children and young people and the general public, including parents - with child protection concerns as to how to deal with those concerns. It is everyone's responsibility to protect children and young people and to do our best to keep them safe.

My officials and I will continue to engage with St. John Ambulance to seek the full implementation of the response document. Officials in my Department have already met with members of the board of St. John Ambulance along with representatives of Tusla to ensure the process to allow the full implementation of these recommendations takes place.

I thank Senators for their attention to this issue over the past three years. I think the very first Commencement matter I took in this Chamber was a response to Senator Ruane on this issue, and Senators' focus on the issue across the Chamber has been hugely impactful.