Seanad debates
Tuesday, 28 February 2023
Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters
Mother and Baby Homes
12:30 pm
Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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Before I call on the first Senator, I welcome the students and staff members from the Holy Family Senior National School, Swords, County Dublin, to the Gallery. Tá fíor-fháilte rompu go léir go dtí Teach Laighean. I hope they have a very enjoyable and educational day.
The Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O'Gorman, is very welcome.
Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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I welcome the Minister and acknowledge the enormous amount of work he has done in this area. The topic of my Commencement matter relates to the Institutional Burials Act 2022. The Minister will be aware that this Act provides a lawful basis for the excavation, exhumation and identification of remains, and their dignified reburial, from the site of the former mother and baby institutions in Tuam in County Galway, and at any site where intervention is required to address manifestly inappropriate burials.
A full exhumation of the bodies of children buried on the grounds of the Tuam mother and baby home in County Galway is expected to begin soon. I understand this will be some time after March. Will the Minister enlighten us as to when that will take place? I also understand that a director of authorised intervention is to be appointed by the Government to oversee the excavations of the site in Tuam, where up to 800 children are buried in unmarked plots. We do not really know the exact number; it is suggested it is approximately 800. It is an issue of major concern, both to the people related to those families, but also to the community itself.
I want to pay tribute to those who exposed the wrongdoings at the Tuam mother and baby home in County Galway and who, in effect, gave voice to those who were silenced. That is an important point to make. Will the Minister share how the director will oversee the phased excavation, recovery, analysis and reburial of the remains and also the forensic standards that will be applied during all this process? Can the Minister also please confirm the process for the identification programme? Where will the human remains be interred on exhumation and during their analysis? It is an important point about which the people involved in this situation want to know.
What are the plans for the Tuam site thereafter? There may be no plan but if the Minister can confirm that one way or another because that is a question that is being asked. How will people be prepared for this really major project that will take place in their community? It will reopen ground; the pain and the stories will reopen wounds, hurts, disappointments and even anger. I understand all of those emotions.
This is a major event for Tuam and we need to prepare all the various people involved for this major piece of forensic work of removing these bodies. Most important, how will we interface and support the relatives and families who were affected by this terrible case? These are real concerns as we draw near the eventual project of excavation. This excavation was promised by the Minister who joined with the people and is delivering on that promise. I acknowledge that. If I say one thing, it is important that we prepare because this is really going to open up so many mixed emotions and hurts. Now that we know we are going into this next phase for Tuam, it is important we address that issue.
Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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I thank Senator Boyhan for giving me an opportunity to speak about the Institutional Burials Act and the preparations under way for an intervention under the legislation at the site of the former mother and baby institution in Tuam, County Galway.
The Institutional Burials Act 2022, which came into operation on 15 July 2022, provides the underlying legislative basis for an intervention whereby the remains of those who died in residential institutions, in respect of which a public body has or had a relevant role, and who were buried in a manifestly inappropriate manner, may be recovered and re-interred in a respectful and appropriate way. As Senators will be aware, the legislation was developed in response to the abhorrent situation at the Tuam site where it was confirmed that children's remains had been discovered that were interred in a manifestly inappropriate manner and the Government was advised that a full forensic-standard excavation, recovery and identification of those remains could not take place under existing legislation. Shortly following enactment, on 27 July, the Government approved my proposal to establish an independent office under the legislation to oversee the excavation, recovery, post-recovery analysis and identification, if possible, of the children’s remains at the Tuam site. As required under the Act, a draft of the Government order directing me to intervene, as well as a statement of the reasons for making the order, were then laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas for a resolution. Following the resolutions in both Houses in September, the Government on 4 October made an order directing the establishment of the Office of Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam and the appointment of a director to head up the office.
The recruitment campaign for a director to lead the intervention was launched by the Public Appointments Service in November. We felt that something of this importance needed the independence of the Public Appointments Service to operate it. I understand that the campaign, which is being managed independently of my Department, is expected to conclude in the coming weeks and I hope to be in a position to appoint the director in this quarter of 2023, that is, by the end of March. Once appointed, the director will need to engage a range of appropriately qualified experts to undertake the excavation, recovery and post-recovery analysis processes. Engineering works and the construction of onsite facilities will also be required in advance of excavation of the site, which will get under way as soon as possible. In this regard, it is important to note that funding of almost €7 million has been secured for the 2023 costs of this multi-annual intervention.
The intervention at the Tuam site is an absolute priority for me. It is imperative that we seek to afford the children there a dignified and respectful burial. I am confident that this hugely important intervention will get under way as soon as possible following the appointment of a director.
The Senator asked about engagement. A key function of the director will be to provide regular updates on his or her work to families, other stakeholders and the general public, which will help to ensure that everyone is kept aware of the plans and how work on the site is progressing. Under the Act, the Minister is required to appoint an advisory board to provide advice and guidance to the director in undertaking his or her functions. The director must consult the board at regular intervals, including at key decision points. The board, which will be chaired by a former coroner or someone with coronial expertise, will also include representatives of family members and former residents. Just as we are looking to appoint a director soon, work is already under way in terms of the appointment of an advisory board.
Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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I apologise to Senator Boyhan that the Minister's script was not available.
Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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That is no problem. We have it now.
I thank the Minister for clarifying those points. The authorised director is going to happen, as the Minister confirmed. In his closing remarks, the Minister might touch on the independence from Government of this process and intervention. Work is under way on the advisory board and I understand from what the Minister said that members of families will be involved in all of that.
To conclude, I thank the Minister for setting out how we are progressing. It is important that we continue to monitor that progress and that there is good, open and transparent communication. It is also important that the community is briefed on the information available. It is not a question of people being on board or off board, but people have various historic connections with this site. It is very important that the families indirectly involved are fully supported and that every element of support is made available to them in this very difficult period for them and for the community in Tuam. I again thank the Minister.
Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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It is important to say that we are setting up a separate agency that will undertake the work specifically at Tuam, and important that it is at a clear remove from Government. Obviously, it will be funded through my Vote but the director will take decisions independently. In order to support the director so it does not just become an entirely bureaucratic process, we have this advisory board. The advisory board will have two representatives of either family members or former residents of the institutions and the local authority will also be represented, which ties it into those kinds of local structures to ensure there is information about what will be happening. The investigation works on the site will be a lengthy process and even after the physical works onsite have ended, there will, of course, be the identification process, the engagement with families in terms of reburial and the question of what site will be chosen. There is a mechanism built in so there is a board comprising family members or former residents, but also long-term engagement with the other families to ensure we can keep them informed and engaged, so they feel they are part of the overall decision making process.