Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to introduce this motion to the House. I acknowledge the survivors whose courage and commitment have brought us to this point. I sincerely thank every single survivor for their bravery, whether they were in a position to come forward or not. In particular, I thank the late Mark Ryan and his brother David, who joined us yesterday in the Houses. I acknowledge the many survivors of historical sexual abuse in schools who told their stories in the years before Mark and David came forward and the hundreds who have come forward since the RTÉ radio documentary "Blackrock Boys" was aired in November 2022.

The Ryan brothers and the many others who came forward to disclose their experiences of historical child sexual abuse in schools have had a central role in the developments that have brought us here today. Of course, this is not the first time that the State has had to confront an appalling legacy of child abuse and the need to inquire into past failings. We have had such discussions here only in recently weeks.

The Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse published its final report in May 2009, revealing the extent of abuse suffered by thousands of children in residential institutions managed by religious congregations. Those shocking revelations of historical abuse in institutional settings forced us to confront a dark chapter of our past. Now we are faced with revelations of widespread and often brazen historical sexual abuse of children in day and boarding schools. Once again, we must confront a painful and shameful history as we seek to lance this national wound.

As a result of the revelations that followed the Ryan brothers' courageous disclosure of their own experiences of sexual abuse in schools, the Government established a scoping inquiry into historical sexual abuse in day and boarding schools run by religious orders. The scoping inquiry was independently led. I acknowledge the work of Mary O'Toole, who carried out the scoping inquiry, and indeed my ministerial predecessor, Deputy Norma Foley, for all her work in this area.

A trauma-informed survivor engagement process was central to the scoping inquiry, and this saw survivors consulted widely on what they considered should be included in a Government response to historical sexual abuse in schools run by religious orders. I commend the scoping inquiry team for undertaking this sensitive work with great care and compassion.

So many survivors of historical child sexual abuse did not have a voice. Some could not say what had happened; others were not heard or believed. The scoping inquiry's survivor engagement process entailed a distinctive approach, providing each participant with the opportunity to tell the scoping inquiry about their experiences and what they wanted to see happen next, in a safe environment.

As many will recall, the scoping inquiry was told of 2,395 allegations of historical sexual abuse in schools run by religious orders, involving 884 alleged abusers in 308 schools across the country between 1927 and 2013. Devastatingly, a considerable number of those allegations related to special schools. The scoping inquiry made 14 recommendations informed by the views of survivors, including the establishment of a commission of investigation. It recommended that the commission should examine the handling of allegations and concerns of child sexual abuse in schools and that its remit should be broadened to include all schools. It recommended that the commission should include a survivor engagement programme and that it should take a survivor-centred and trauma-informed approach.It recommended that the commission should include a survivor engagement programme and that it should take a survivor-centred and trauma-informed approach.

The report of the scoping inquiry was published on 3 September 2024. A high-level interdepartmental group, IDG, was immediately established to advise the Government on the recommendations of the scoping inquiry and to prepare draft terms of reference for the commission of investigation. The Government immediately accepted the primary recommendation of the scoping inquiry, which was to establish a commission of investigation. To date, it has accepted 13 of the 14 recommendations of the scoping inquiry. Several of the recommendations relate to the remit and operation of the commission of investigation.

The Government has agreed to appoint Mr. Justice Michael MacGrath, an eminent judge of the Court of Appeal, as chair of the commission. Mr. Justice MacGrath brings considerable experience to this role, having been appointed a judge of the High Court in January 2018, and appointed to the Court of Appeal in June 2024. I again thank him for agreeing to carry out this very important work. He will be assisted in the work by a number of commissioners and a support team.

The scoping inquiry's report sets out not just the devastating accounts of the sexual abuse that participants experienced as children, but the impact on their education, the loss of opportunity in school and the often lifelong impact on relationships, employment and their sense of self. Participants' accounts of there being no place or sense of safety in their schools represents the most egregious breach of trust by those responsible for running those schools. Some participants spoke of loss of community, childhood, faith, family and even country, as the aftermath of what they experienced trickled through every facet of their life. Others spoke of the difficulty in telling anyone what had happened, and a deep sense of shame and guilt. That shame and guilt do not belong to the survivors; it belongs to those responsible for child sexual abuse in schools. What is clear from the scoping inquiry is that survivors want accountability. They deserve accountability. The establishment of the commission represents the Government's commitment to a serious response, in which we seek to understand the past so as to inform the here and now as well as the future. The terms of reference of the commission have been prepared by the interdepartmental group and they closely reflect the recommendations of the scoping inquiry. Crucially, at every step, the work of the interdepartmental group was centrally informed by the views of survivors, expressed so powerfully in the scoping inquiry's extensive survivor engagement consultation process. Since the report was published, many others have come forward for the very first time, whether to support agencies or to report what happened to them to An Garda Síochána. Through their harrowing accounts of their own experience, the scoping inquiry participants have paved a path for others who may now choose to tell their stories to the commission.

The commission will have a remit to examine the handling of sexual abuse in all types of schools. This wish was expressed by many survivors, and it is one I strongly support. I know that many others do as well. The commission will investigate concerns of child sexual abuse and failures to treat such concerns in a manner that protected children. It will examine the causes and responsibilities for those failures and, importantly, it will have the power to compel witnesses and documents, which was a key concern for survivors who participated in the scoping inquiry. Schools, persons and entities responsible for, and associated with schools, An Garda Síochána, the HSE and its predecessor and successor organisations and the Department of Education fall within the ambit of the commission's terms of reference. While I expect voluntary co-operation from any group or entity that the commission wishes to engage with, I note that the scoping inquiry reported that it had received positive engagement. I want to emphasise, however, that such co-operation is required and it is enforceable.

Survivors want to know why child sexual abuse was so prevalent in some schools and contexts, why it happened and why it went on for so long. As a society, we need to understand the impact of child sexual abuse in schools and, crucially, we need to learn for the future. A common wish for many survivors is that they want to be sure that what they endured can never happen again.

The commission will investigate matters of critical importance to survivors, as they so eloquently described to the scoping inquiry. These include: actions taken or not taken where concerns of child sexual abuse arose; failure to prevent harm to children where concerns of child sexual abuse arose; failure to report concerns to the appropriate authorities; concealment of child sexual abuse; whether laws and guidelines were followed; whether persons suspected of child sexual abuse were permitted to have access to children, or moved to other locations or institutions; whether there were co-ordinated actions with regard to child sexual abuse; and the approach taken toward criminal prosecutions and civil litigation.

A core priority for survivors is the need to see this process conducted efficiently and in a timely manner. That is why the terms of reference require that the commission completes its work within five years. Within the first two years, the chair is required to confirm his belief that this is achievable, or to propose any modifications that may be required to facilitate completion within five years. I want to be clear on that point: this is not an opportunity for the chair to seek an extension, it is an opportunity for him to set out whether it is feasible to complete the work within five years. If it is not, the commissioner will have to change the way they are working so the five-year deadline can be met. Survivors have been clear that they want to see outcomes in their lifetime, and I am absolutely committed to making sure that this happens.

To that end, the scoping inquiry's recommendation that the commission adopts a sampling approach is provided for in the terms of reference. The commission will conduct an initial national survey as it seeks to establish the potential volume of witnesses and evidence that may be available to support its investigations. It will then select samples for detailed investigation, informed by what survivors relate to it in the national survey.

The commission may consider child sexual abuse in schools between 1927 and 2013 in its report. The commission has the power to reduce the time period under investigation as it considers appropriate, depending on available evidence, and this will allow it to concentrate on periods of time that may provide answers for more of the survivors who come forward in the national survey. That is very much at the discretion of the commission. It is something it does not have to do but may choose to do depending on who comes forward and what information is available.

It is important to state that the commission will also have a survivor engagement programme that will run parallel to its formal investigation. All survivors who wish to provide an account of their experiences to the commission will have the opportunity to do so through this programme. I emphasise that the survivor engagement programme is non-adversarial, and survivors will be able to provide their account in private, in a supportive environment without cross-examination. The survivor engagement programme can also hear from a relative of a deceased survivor, and it is completely anonymous. This reflects the views of survivors expressed in the scoping inquiry report that any process would need to accommodate survivors who cannot, or who do not wish for whatever reason, to speak publicly about what happened to them.

The survivor engagement programme is one element of an overall survivor-centred and trauma-informed approach for the commission. This will include consultation and clear communication with survivors, training for the commission's team in working with those who have experienced childhood sexual abuse, and implementing practical steps to minimise risks of retraumatisation. While implementing these measures will be a matter for the commission itself, I know that this is of great importance to Mr. Justice Michael MacGrath.

I emphasise that the terms of reference for the commission explicitly require it to promote support for those with additional needs to facilitate an accessible and inclusive process wherever possible. The scoping inquiry highlighted the devastating extent of allegations of sexual abuse in special schools, and it is critical that all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that this process is accessible from the outset, in all aspects of its work.

The commission is independent and will begin its work in the coming months. An initial period of consultation with survivors and other stakeholders, including those in the disability and additional needs sector, will be an important part of that work, in advance of a national survey as set out in the terms of reference. When the commission has the necessary arrangements in place to begin its engagement with survivors, that will be widely advertised to ensure that as many people as possible are aware that the commission is doing its work and that they can contribute to it and be part of it if they so wish.

The scoping inquiry made a number of other recommendations, and 13 of its 14 recommendations have now been accepted. The area of redress is extremely important for survivors not just to ensure that the institutions and religious orders responsible for the schools where child sexual abuse occurred are held accountable, but that they are also held financially accountable.

The report of the interdepartmental group advises that more work must be undertaken on any potential scheme. Any scheme must be funded by those who ran the schools where the abuse occurred. To be clear: all potential mechanisms that can be brought to bear to secure the funding from those responsible for sexual abuse in schools must be considered, and they will be considered. This work will include looking at potential changes to the Statute of Limitations for civil claims, changes to the status of unincorporated associations, examining the assets of the relevant religious orders and other bodies with responsibility for running schools, as well as other options.

I fully recognise how important redress is for survivors as a measure of accountability for what they experienced as children and the lifelong impact it has had for them and their families also. This is why more work, and more analysis is required regarding financial redress. I emphasise that this work will happen in parallel to the work of the commission. It is vital that the work of the commission proceeds without undue delay. That is why the Government has approved the establishment of the commission now, as the other work continues in parallel.

The Government has also accepted further recommendations of the scoping inquiry. These relate to the experiences of victims of sexual violence in the criminal justice system. The zero-tolerance strategy is a whole-of-government approach to combating domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, with a very clear focus on how we can improve not just the justice system but the entire system to support victims of sexual violence.On engagement on memorialisation, something that came through clearly on the scoping inquiry is that there is not a clear agreed position on what memorialisation would look like but it is so important that we never forget what has happened here. This commission will allow us to look again at how we can ensure that happens. The recommendations also relate to supports for survivors throughout the commission's work and further strengthening child protection in schools.

I note that the scoping inquiry found that the current child protection systems in our schools are effective. My Department takes child protection very seriously and considers that the protection and welfare of children is a fundamental responsibility of all involved in the care and education of children.

However, I am aware that more can always be done. I have no doubt that more should be done at present. My Department is establishing a child protection in schools group, as recommended by the report of the scoping inquiry, to further strengthen those robust systems. This group will deal with overarching child protection policy and will provide updates as required to the commission of investigation in the course of its work in relation to child protection in schools, and will have to ensure all those responsible for child protection are part of that group and are feeding into any of the work it does.

I acknowledge that there is a strong culture of child protection in schools now, and the vital role played by our school communities in that regard. Many of the survivors who came forward to the scoping inquiry explained that they felt compelled to do so because of their need to be sure that what they endured would not happen to another child, and their greatest priority was often to ensure that lessons would be learned to ensure the ongoing safety of children in schools going forward.

Today is an important day and, indeed, a difficult day for many survivors who experienced the devastation of child sexual abuse in our schools. I thank them again. In particular, I recognise Mark and David Ryan for the service they have done. We would not be standing here, I believe, without their service, and essentially them telling their own story. Mark has left an immeasurable legacy. From having met with David recently, I know he is determined to continue what they started together. I want to say to him here today that we stand with him and all survivors in doing that by establishing this commission of investigation. I, again, thank every single person impacted for their bravery and I thank all colleagues for their engagement on this important matter here today.