Laura Harmon (Labour)

I acknowledge Mark Ryan and his brother David, who was in the Dáil Gallery yesterday, for their tremendous work in this regard. This commission is welcome but it certainly is not before its time. Irish society and the State need to reckon with our painful and shameful history of violence and sexual violence against children in our schools. This needs to inform our future as a nation. I want to record my utmost respect for survivors, those who spoke out, and everyone who has brought us to this point. They have done a huge service to us all. Speaking out about what they experienced and calling it out have come at a personal cost for so many. Openness and transparency have to be paramount to this process. The Minister has said that survivors will not be put through a cross-examination process. It is important that we do not retraumatise survivors and we minimise that impact as much as possible. My party leader, Deputy Ivana Bacik, published a Bill that would facilitate the child sexual abuse proceedings against unincorporated associations, including religious orders, and would provide a mechanism for recovering damages from the lay-run trusts set up by these bodies and to which many of their assets have been typically transferred.I understand this Bill has been sent on to the Tánaiste and the Taoiseach. A response is needed on this and how we progress it because the State must be able to compel these orders to provide redress and justice. It is welcome that this process will ensure that survivors with additional needs are able to access it. I share the concerns that Inclusion Ireland have highlighted about this as well. How will this inquiry co-operate with the Garda on information sharing and how will we ensure the survivor's expectations of criminal justice will be met?