Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 124:

In page 5, line 6, after “circumstances” to insert “and historical actions”.

I acknowledge the clarification and the setting out of the reasons various amendments were ruled out of order. I have no difficulty with that. It is ironic that after all of the amendments I tabled, only two were accepted, namely, the first and the last. That is interesting. This amendment seeks to add the words "historical actions" to the Title of the Bill. When I sat down earlier with a pen and paper, I thought that this would give me lots of scope to think back. I am glad to have the opportunity to move the last amendment on Committee Stage and will outline my thoughts on it.

My proposal is that the new Title would read:

Bill entitled an Act to provide, in recognition of the circumstances and historical actions [this is the piece I am proposing to add] experienced by certain persons while resident in certain institutions in the State, for the establishment of a scheme to be known as the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme for the purpose of the making of payments and the making available without charge of health services to such persons; to provide for the making by such persons of applications for such payments and services; and to provide for related matters.

While the purpose of this Bill is to recognise the circumstances experienced by certain residents in certain institutions, another important aspect of the Bill is that it recognises historical actions and that is what I want to touch on. I do not know what the Minister's decision on this amendment will be but I want to touch briefly on a few key words. I tabled many amendments but almost all of them were ruled out of order. That said, I had an opportunity to articulate some of my concerns with and views on the legislation. In the context of the term "historical actions", I am referring to the vaccine trials, boarded out children, the abuse of children, child labour, forced adoptions, the denial of parental access in certain circumstances, the denial of educational opportunities, trauma, forced separation of family members against their own interests, the denial of family records, although that is being addressed, unjust detention of children in certain circumstances and the lack of access to those children by their legal parents and those legally inloco parentis, and the failure of ongoing engagement. That is a summary. If we look back and are honest with ourselves, these are the key recurring themes - not forgetting children below six months - that we have not been able to get over the line at this juncture.

I am not going to go on at any great length. The legislation will go to Report Stage. I understand the debate in that regard has been agreed and scheduled for 14 June. On that date, we will be back in here for four hours to debate the Bill, which is important. I do not know where we will go from there. We operate in a parliamentary democracy. That is the system and we just have to beaver ahead. As I said last night, there are other opportunities outside this House to pursue the agenda of justice for those affected.

The amendment proposes the simple inclusion of the words "historical actions" in the Title of the Bill.