Teresa Costello (Fianna Fail)
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I move:

That Seanad Éireann approves the following Regulations in draft: Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 60(6)) (Scoping Exercise in Response to Requests from Dignity4Patients) Regulations 2026,

Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 51(3)) (Scoping Exercise in Response to Requests from Dignity4Patients) Regulations 2026,

Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 60(6)) (Children’s Health Ireland Inquiry into Spina Bifida and Complex Scoliosis Services Scoping Exercise) Regulations 2026,

Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 51(3)) (Children’s Health Ireland Inquiry into Spina Bifida and Complex Scoliosis Services Scoping Exercise) Regulations 2026, copies of which were laid in draft form before Seanad Éireann on 23rd March, 2026.”

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State is most welcome to Seanad Éireann.

Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Cathaoirleach. I welcome the opportunity to address the House on behalf of the Minister for Health on two important scoping exercises currently under way and to address the motion to approve four data protection regulations relating to these exercises. It is important that we put these updates in the context of the patients whose lives are at the heart of these issues.

I am very conscious that we are speaking in the context of the publication of details of the case of Chloe Maher. Chloe, who died recently, was formerly a patient of CHI's spinal services. As Members will appreciate, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on an individual case, but I do want to take this opportunity to offer my deepest condolences to Chloe's family and friends at this sad time. My heart goes out to them. It is the children, parents, families and survivors whose voices and experiences are at the centre of these processes and it is their lived experiences that will shape this work. The first matter I wish to address is the CHI inquiry into spina bifida and complex scoliosis services scoping exercise. As a first step, the Government agreed that a facilitator will be appointed to consult with stakeholders on scoping the content of potential terms of reference for an inquiry. This process, the scoping exercise, is designed to ensure that when a public inquiry is established, it has structures that reflect the needs of children and families, are grounded in evidence and avoid duplication with existing statutory or clinical processes.

The Minister for Health appointed Mr. Remy Farrell SC as the independent facilitator to conduct this scoping exercise. The exercise will run for up to 16 weeks from his commencement date, which was 3 March. It was on the Attorney General’s recommendations that the Minister appointed Mr. Farrell due to his appropriate stature, experience and willingness to undertake this role. This marks a significant and much anticipated step forward. I and the Minister are very pleased that this work is now under way.

Mr. Farrell is a highly respected senior counsel with extensive experience in sensitive and complex matters. He will lead a structured programme of engagement designed to ensure that the voices of families are central to this process. While Mr. Farrell is known for his expertise in complex legal matters, what is also needed here is his ability to approach sensitive issues with humanity and respect. I hope families will feel able to engage meaningfully with this process and I strongly encourage full engagement with Mr. Farrell. The lived experiences of children and families are vital to shaping an inquiry that truly reflects the needs and realities of the children and families affected. Once this scoping exercise is complete, further Government approval will be sought for the final terms of reference to a statutory process. This inquiry will form part of the wider reflection on paediatric services in CHI.

I now want to turn to the scoping exercise in response to requests from Dignity4Patients on behalf of victims and survivors of Michael Shine. I would like to recognise the courage of the many individuals affected by Mr. Shine in continuing to seek justice for the very great wrongdoing that they suffered. On 26 November, the Government agreed that a timebound scoping exercise be undertaken by an independent person in response to requests from Dignity4Patients. The Minister appointed Mr. Lorcan Staines SC as the independent facilitator. Mr. Staines also commenced his work on 3 March and the exercise will run for up to 16 weeks. He has been finalising the terms of reference in direct consultation with Dignity4Patients.

Mr. Staines has two decades’ experience in criminal, regulatory and administrative law. He is widely recognised for his specialist work with victims and vulnerable witnesses, particularly in sensitive cases involving sexual violence and has advised both the Minister for justice and the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre on reforms to better protect people in the criminal process. Mr. Staines will fulfil his role as a facilitator through direct engagement with victims and survivors of Michael Shine, working alongside Dignity4Patients. Mr. Staines will receive all necessary supports to ensure that a victim-centred, trauma-informed and human rights-based approach underpins the scoping exercise and any subsequent statutory processes. The well-being of victims and survivors will be central throughout this process. The final report and recommendations will be submitted to the Government to guide the development of an appropriate and bespoke response to the issues raised and the needs identified by Dignity4Patients.

At the outset, I emphasised the paramount importance of the lived experiences of those affected to the work of both Mr. Farrell and Mr. Staines and that it is important that they get to engage with a number of patients, advocates and families and for them to have their voices heard. In order for this to happen, a lawful basis to process personal data for these exercises is required. This will allow the facilitators to conduct stakeholder engagement. It is intended to rely on Article 6(1)(e), Article 9(2)(1) and, in the case of the Dignity4Patients scoping exercise, Article 10 of the general data protection regulation. In accordance with these articles, the making of regulations under the Data Protection Act 2018, including sections 38(4)(b), 51(3) and 60(6), is necessary to give domestic legal effect to this basis, to ensure legal certainty and foreseeability, and to place appropriate safeguards on a statutory footing. No processing can commence until the necessary statutory framework is in place and any regulations have been made and commenced.

Officials in the Department of Health have been working with the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel to draft these regulations. Consultations have also occurred with the Data Protection Commission and the Department of justice. I thank these three offices for their work and advice in getting these regulations to this point. I would also like to focus on the work the Minister has undertaken to address challenges families have faced in relation to paediatric orthopaedic services and spinal services in particular. This includes strengthening governance and oversight, driving down waiting times, ensuring increased engagement and timely communications with families of patients with a view to building a better and more responsive service.

The Minister has held meetings with the HSE and the CHI board and executive and made it clear that everything possible must be done to reduce the amount of time children are waiting on procedures. Several initiatives are under way to help improve access to services including a ring-fenced theatre, additional outpatient clinics, outsourcing to maximise capacity and the enhancement of the transition pathways for patients from CHI to adult services. These initiatives have supported the completion of 534 paediatric spinal procedures in 2025, compared to 513 completed procedures in 2024, demonstrating an increase in activity and capacity. Over the same timeframe, a total of 524 procedures were added to the waiting list. Every effort is being made to reduce waiting times in the context of the rising demand.

To close, I want to again acknowledge the courage of the children, parents, families and survivors whose experiences have brought us to this point. Their voices must remain central as this work continues. I thank the House and all of those affected for their engagement and their strength.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming with these very important regulations. The Minister met with the group on dignity. I note the unfortunate passing of Chloe and I also extend my sympathies to the Maher family. I understand there have been so many issues. We looked at it on our health committee as well and we met the different organisations but I understand why data protection has to be brought in. It is very important that a true picture be reflected and appropriate people have been put in place to gather this information, with a full report to come back. Under data protection, people's privacy will be treated with respect and the people will be treated with respect. These are very important regulations in that respect. It is important that the truth and the report come forward and these kinds of situations will not happen in the future. Because of that, they are very important regulations, as is the fact that experienced people have been put in place as well to carry out the report and the research. I wish them all the best in their endeavours because of the sensitivities and that whole side of it. It is not a very easy task for anybody but I believe the fact that there will be a full report at the end is most important. I support the Minister of State's regulations.

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Murnane O'Connor, and I thank her for a comprehensive report on what is a motion in regard to Data Protection Act 2018 regulations of 2026 for two scoping exercises. It is a highly sensitive area. We talk many times about the lived experience but it takes courage, guts and bravery to pour out your vulnerability regarding the many injustices perpetrated against you.It is important to say that many people were banging on a lot of doors for a long time and were given the cold shoulder. I do not want to get into the personalities here because it is not helpful. We now know a lot more information about it. I want to acknowledge particularly the significance of the "Prime Time" and "RTÉ Investigates" current affairs programmes that carried out extensive public scrutiny of the issues that we are talking about here tonight. That is the great thing about public broadcasting and the public service broadcasting. They do the State a great service because they shine a light in very dark places where for years people have successfully navigated and snaked around corridors to avoid being exposed. Brave and courageous people were not going to be kept down. We see this so much in the work of advocates, and particularly political advocates. Each and every one of us know those people and I suppose that is what motivates most of us. Not too many of us are politicians and I do not particularly want to be a politician with a big "P" but I do want to be an advocate with a big "A". That is where we bring power and we give voice to people outside.

Remy Farrell SC and Lorcan Staines SC are very eminent, able and capable people. They will facilitate and they are doing a scoping report. The thing we have to watch, and hopefully as time progresses and they complete this first phase of their work, is that maybe we would come back, or someone from the Minister of State's Department will come back, to at least keep us informed. What people do not want is for this thing to get stalled. Yes, it has to be right. Yes, due process has to be taken. Yes, all sides have to be heard and of course we have to afford that to everyone. It is only fair, right and proper that we have a sort of due process but it is important that the work commences. The Minister of State has confirmed here today, which I think is great, that she is coming here not to tell us that something might happen or might start but that it has started. This is really positive news.

I ask the Minister of State to convey my thanks to the Minister for Health, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, who is ultimately the lead Minister in this Department. I know from speaking to the Minister of her absolute commitment to get justice but we have to tread carefully, we have to be very careful and we have to go through the processes. As my colleague has said, they are complex issues, they are sensitive issues and they are still very raw for many people although they happened quite some time ago. The important thing now is that there are no inordinate delays, that the people involved are kept informed at the various stages of the process, and while we might have a scoping report and recommendations we must get ready for the next phase and the next phase. I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House, for setting it out really comprehensively and for giving us an overview of the issues involved. Let us keep ourselves informed and updated, which may be to the relevant sectoral committee that has an interest. It is important now that we get on with the work. The Government made a commitment and it has delivered, or shall we say it has commenced the work. That is very positive news and I want to thank the Minister of State for coming to the House tonight to share that with us.

Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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I am delighted to be here and I thank the Senator.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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A vote has been called in the Dáil. We will suspend the House for the duration of the vote so the Minister of State can attend.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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We will resume our debate on the motion on the Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 60(6)) and Section 51(3)) Regulations 2006. Next to speak is Senator Costello.

Teresa Costello (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming in. I welcome and support this motion. It is necessary and timely in light of the establishment of a statutory public inquiry into spina bifida and complex scoliosis services at Children's Health Ireland, CHI. The Minister of State spoke about the importance of lived experience. For these scoping exercises to proceed effectively, it is essential that the personal data can be processed lawfully. The legal basis for processing this is grounded in Article 6(1)(e) of the general data protection regulation, GDPR. As the work is necessary for the performance of the tasks to be carried out in the public interest and specifically to inform the Minister on the appropriate next steps, it is essential to ensure that the people are protected and that the necessary protections are in place. It cannot go ahead without this. It will enable a thorough and respectful engagement with those affected while ensuring their rights and dignity remain at the forefront. I wholeheartedly welcome it.

Maria McCormack (Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming in. We absolutely welcome this motion on the regulations and the scoping exercise. I just want to talk about the facts that are there right now. On 18 November 2025, the Government agreed to the establishment of a statutory public inquiry into spina bifida and complex scoliosis services at CHI. On 26 November 2025, it also agreed to a scoping exercise in response to the request from Dignity4Patients on behalf of the victims and survivors of Michael Shine, to be undertaken by an independent person. Both facilitators for the individual scoping exercises commenced their work on Tuesday 3 March 2026. The exercises will run for up to 16 weeks. I totally welcome this. Both of these scoping exercises are welcome. It is clear that in order for the facilitators to conduct these exercises, it is required that the personal data be processed. Today's motion deals with the technicalities in order that all of this can happen. I welcome the progression of these inquiries. For many years, Sinn Féin requested that such inquiries be established. The Shine inquiry seems to be progressing in line with the wishes of the victims and survivors. I hope that continues. I have concerns that the patients, namely the children, and parents who were totally failed are not considered central in the context of the CHI inquiry. I really hope this can happen because it is important that we listen to the voices of those with lived experience.

The ongoing failures relating to children with scoliosis and spina bifida are appalling and shameful. There are not enough words to describe the failures on the part of successive Governments. We have to call it out as it is. It is eight years since Simon Harris promised that no child would wait longer than four months for spinal surgery. That promise has been broken again and again.Today, children are still in desperate, heart-breaking situations. I have met many of these families. We have seen report after report, for example, the HIQA report, the Boston report, the Dickson report, the Arthur Cox report, the Nayagam review and many others.

I really hope that this will lead to meaningful action. So many children had unnecessary surgeries. Some children had unauthorised springs used in their surgeries. One of those children, a young boy, is known personally to me. He has a lot of health complications from those springs being put in.

Some children waited so long for the surgeries they urgently needed that they lost their lives, which the Minister of State spoke about in her opening statement. We will not go into any details, but poor Chloe Maher. I extend my deepest sympathies to her family. In the case of young Harvey Morrison Sherratt, a child died before ever getting his surgery. His heartbroken parents then had to deal with the revelation that Harvey had been taken off the waiting list without their knowledge. More parents, in sheer desperation, have taken to highlighting their children's stories in the media to try to get action from the Minister and the HSE to get their children the treatment they need and highlight the mistakes and failures that were repeatedly made. It is shocking; it is utterly disgraceful. No child or family should have to go through any of these horror stories. That is all we could call it - a horror story that we have been listening to for too long now. More needs to be done for the children who are still waiting on surgery. That is really clear because the failures are still happening. We need to be sure that, for children with complex cases, the failures and the scandals stop happening time and over again in children's healthcare.

The inquiry is welcome, but it has to look at the failures from the top to the bottom. We need to know what happened in each and every child's case and we need to be absolutely sure that there is no hiding place for anybody throughout this process. There is a lot of work to be done. I really sincerely hope that this inquiry is done right.

I want to pay particular tribute to the incredible patients, parents and advocates who have turned their horrific pain into power to seek justice. This is one of the greatest failures of our generation. I really hope that every resource will be put into this and that no stone will be left unturned so that this inquiry stops further failures in Children's Health Ireland for young children.

Patricia Stephenson (Social Democrats)
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I welcome the Minister of State. I welcome the opportunity to speak on the proposed regulations under the Data Protection Act 2018 and the scoping exercises that will be under way in 2026. Right now, children with spinal bifida and scoliosis are being failed, not just in care delivery, but in how their needs are defined, measured and, ultimately, understood.

I have been in touch with patient advocates and advocacy groups on this issue. There is significant pain and frustration about the scandalous failure to treat children suffering from spinal conditions. Children with spinal bifida and scoliosis often present with overlapping multifaceted needs, including orthopaedic, neurological and psychological needs, but far too often, they are treated as if they fall neatly into one category. They simply do not. When complexity is not properly defined and accounted for, it is not prioritised, and when it is not prioritised, children and families are left waiting. In terms of an inquiry, they could also be left being excluded.

One of the most glaring issues is the absence of a clear definition of "complexity" when it comes to scoliosis. I would love to know what the departmental guidelines will be in relation to this scoping exercise around defining what complex scoliosis actually is and means as a condition because that definition does not currently exist. Without that definition, there is a real risk that many of the families will be left out of the inquiry, so it is vital that that definition be agreed upon with patient advocates and that it be both comprehensive and inclusive so that the inquiry reaches the widest number of affected children.

I want to address the ongoing issue of waiting lists. There has only been a drop of four in the last year, so there are still 229 children on the waiting list for surgery. At the same time, the number of children who have a date for surgery has dropped from 16 to 11 and the number of surgeries carried out has dropped from 87 to 68. Those figures are shocking when we are committed to improving the waiting list management. What is the reason for this and why are the HSE and CHI so unable to address the issue of waiting list management? It is clear that waiting list management still has not been grappled with and addressed in any meaningful way. How can parents have any faith in the upcoming inquiry when the management of waiting lists cannot be managed well and when they remain totally untransparent? Are CHI and the HSE actively identifying children who fit the criteria for outsourcing care overseas?

We already know what waiting means within this context. It means pain. It means deterioration. It means a child's condition becoming more severe, more difficult to treat and more life-limiting. Of course, as in the horrific case of Harvey Morrison Sherratt, it can mean death. This month, we already heard about the tragic death of Chloe Maher. Chloe did not receive the surgical treatment she needed in time and she aged out of the child system and entered into the adult spinal treatment system. Chloe may have died as an adult, but it was the failure to provide her care in a timely manner as a child that ultimately will have led to her death. It is, therefore, essential for Chloe and every other young adult who has aged out of being considered a child and who has aged out of children's healthcare that they be included in the terms of reference of this inquiry, as the failure to treat them as children led to their deaths or the complex conditions they now have as adults. I also want to extend my condolences to both Chloe and Harvey's families today.

Waiting list management is not an administrative issue. It is about clinical urgency and fairness. The current approaches have failed to reflect the real progression of conditions like scoliosis. A child can move from moderate to severe curvature of the spine within a matter of months, yet they remain in the same place on the waiting list. The waiting lists are not adapting quickly enough. They are not adapting to clinical needs and changing sufficiently. They are not sufficiently dynamic and they are not responsive. Crucially, they are not transparent enough for families who are left in the dark as to where they stand on the waiting lists and what comes next for them.

I welcome the inquiry, but there are concerns about the ability of CHI and the Department to do this right because up to the to this point, there has been a chronic lack of transparency and there has been obfuscation from CHI to families. With the paediatric spinal task force for waiting lists that was established 2024, there was some hope of answers and clarity for families, but what have we got to show for it? No final report has been published. No recommendations have been issued. There has been no public update since May 2025. There has been no communication to families. The task force now appears to have been replaced by an internal group within CHI, but for this new group, there are still no terms of reference that have been published and no clarity on governance or accountability around it. It feels like it is more of the same when it comes to transparency and accountability for families. There is still no clarity on how the waiting lists are being managed. That is why it is so crucial that we address this when it comes to the new inquiry.

The Minister committed to an equity of access audit on spinal surgery waiting list management. That was due in November 2025 and I believe it is still not published. This audit is critical. It goes directly to whether children are accessing scoliosis care fairly and based on clinical need. The Nayagam report was published to deal with springs placed in children. The first stage was completed, with 91 children reviewed and over 60 children needing follow-up. That report has still not been published. The Department said it wants to publish that. It is now subject to an injunction, so it cannot be published. May I have any comment on whether the Government is challenging that injunction? What steps are in place so that the parents and children can have clear access over that review? It is really crucial. It needs to be published.

These are only some of the issues surrounding around openness and transparency that have completely eroded trust among parents who have children with scoliosis and spina bifida. Trust is broken. I am sure the Minister of State can recognise that. When we go into this new inquiry, we must consider how to build trust so that there is a sense of this inquiry actually delivering answers for people. Is there any reflection on what safeguards will be put in place to ensure this new inquiry will not have an injunction placed on it? Is that something that is going to be inevitable? Are there any safeguards we can put in place to stop that so that when the review is finalised and when the inquiry is done, it can be published?

There is also a critical piece around the Nayagam report. It is very difficult for parents to meaningfully engage with the terms of reference when they actually do not have that review. I understand that the Department is engaging with advocacy groups and parents so that they engage in the terms of reference, but if they do not have access to that information and if the Nayagam report is not published in advance of those terms of reference, can they meaningfully engage with the new inquiry? I would say they cannot, and that is a big problem. I do not know if we can really ask them to engage. It will feel like a box-ticking exercise if they have not received and been able to analyse the Nayagam report in advance of that.

I want to touch on the issues around inquiry design, including how we design the scoping mechanism and what the inquiry is going to look like. If the inquiry is to have any credibility, it has to include the voices of the most affected. That means children themselves in an age-appropriate and rights-based way. It means their families, who are often forced to become full-time advocates simply to secure basic care.It means the inclusion of children who have aged out of the child services they needed. It also means the inclusion of advocacy groups that dealt with this issue for years, and long before it received any political attention. Their voices need to be heard.

The term "direct engagement" has been used by the Department in referencing the scoping exercise, but what does that really mean? It sounds great in theory, but there is a real risk of it becoming tokenistic, particularly when parents have not had access to previous reviews. This engagement is happening without sight of the report from the task force or of the previous reports that remain unpublished. How can we have meaningful engagement when those reports have not been published? How can we seriously ask advocates to co-develop the terms of reference when they do not have access to these reports?

We all know that there is deep and growing frustration among families about responses from CHI. Too often, engagement has been dismissive, slow and very disconnected from the urgency of the children's clinical needs. This has also contributed to the erosion of trust. Rebuilding that trust requires more than words. It requires meaningful change. There remains a question around the definition of "mediator" in the context of the inquiry. We are using the term "facilitator." I understand that there is no legal definition or statutory basis in Ireland for the term "facilitator." I wonder why we are using the term "facilitator" as opposed to that of "mediator". Why are we are not using something for which we have a statutory basis? The Minister of State might speak to that.

Patient advocacy groups were promised a collaborative approach in the selection of the mediator. However, it seems that the mediator - and I think he is somebody who has got great qualifications, so it is not a question of querying any of that or of querying the individual himself - but it was not done collaboratively with the patients. It was done without any prior discussion, and the parents and advocacy groups believed that they would have engagement on the selection of the mediator. Now, we have a facilitator who has been appointed without their input. Again, this creates a dynamic of erosion of trust. As we move forward with the scoping exercises and the inquiry, we really need to get the fundamentals right. We need to define complexity, clearly and clinically, when it comes to scoliosis. We need to include the voices of children, families and advocates in shaping this work. We need to fix waiting list management in order that it reflects real-world progression and urgency of clinical needs. We need to have all of these reports and reviews published up to this point, or else it is meaningless. We are going in blind into this new inquiry. We will be duplicating and will not be getting the best for the patients.

Regarding the scoping exercise for the survivors and victims of Michael Shine, it is crucial that their voices are heard. Michael Shine's actions are a stark reminder of the devastating consequences that arise when trust in our healthcare system is profoundly violated. The survivors deserve dignity and protection after their rights were utterly violated under his care. The impact on survivors has been deep and enduring. It caused long-term psychological trauma. Their courage to speak out has highlighted their personal suffering but has also exposed serious failings in oversight and accountability, underscoring the urgent need for a survivor-centred inquiry and to ensure that this does not happen again. There is one individual involved, but we must consider the questions of accountability, oversight and governance. We must also consider how this happened and how we can stop it from happening again.

Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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I want to thank all the Senators who spoke so well tonight. As they stated, the concerns and issues that arise are something that the Department and the HSE are working on. The officials from the Department are here tonight. We will definitely come back to Senator Stephenson with answers to some of the questions she posed.

In the context of Senators' contributions, the two scoping exercises are so important for all of us, for the families and everyone who has been affected and for the advocacy groups. I want to bring people back to the heart of why these procedures and this process matters. Behind every scoping exercise, inquiry, term of reference and statutory instrument, there are people whose lives have been deeply shaped by the events and system that we are examining. These inquiries are timely about individuals, children, parents, families and survivors. That is what it is all about. On behalf of the Department and the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, I assure Senators that this is centred on the children, the parents, the family and the survivors. This is the centre of what is being worked on.

I have provided updates today about the Children's Health Ireland inquiry into spina bifida, the complex scoliosis services scoping exercise, and the scoping exercise in response to requests from Dignity4Patients on behalf of victims and survivors of Michael Shine. The parents who have fought for improvements in scoliosis and spina bifida services have shown extraordinary strength and resilience. Their advocacy has been driven by a desire not just to improve services for their own children but also to ensure to ensure that no family will face the same obstacles, delays or distress in the future. That is what we are working to do.

These families came to the Government looking for partnership, honesty and change, and I want to assure them that today their voices are central to the process that is now under way. The appointment of Mr. Remy Farrell SC is an important step, but the most important element will always be the lived experience of the children and families who have faced these challenges. The survivors who came forward through Dignity4Patients have shown immense courage. They have carried hurt and pain for a very long time and it takes a profound bravery to revisit experiences of harm in order to help shape a system that is safer for others. The appointment of Mr. Lorcan Staines SC and the victim-centred approach to his scoping exercise represents our commitment to ensuring that survivors are treated with dignity, respect and care at every step. That lies at the heart of this. Their well-being is not an afterthought; it is the foundation on which this work will be done. That is something the Senators have highlighted. It is a priority for us.

These scoping exercises are about people. They are about learning from the past, acknowledging harm, understanding what went wrong and ensuring that our systems are strong enough, safe enough and compassionate enough to prevent such failures from ever happening again. That is why it so important that these regulations under the Data Protection Act 2018 be passed by the Houses today. The regulations provide the legal basis for facilitators to process personal data, which is essential to these exercises. Without this, the process will not be able to fully scope the issues or what we have to do for the patients, families and victims. We cannot share their lived experience without this.

I also want to acknowledge the staff across our health service, whether in CHI, the HSE or hospital or community settings, who work every day with compassion and commitment. An inquiry is a tool to identify where systems fail or where they are not yet strong enough. The goal is improvement, accountability and healing. To the families and survivors listening in today, I say that your courage has brought us to this point. Your advocacy has shaped these scoping exercises and your voices will continue to guide what happens next.

The Minister is committed to ensuring that each scoping exercise has the independence, the resources and the authority it needs to carry out its work thoroughly and fairly. She is equally committed to ensuring that their recommendations shape real, sustained and meaningful actions. As we move forward, I want to encourage those affected to engage fully and openly with Mr. Farrell and Mr. Staines. I know that participating in these processes can be difficult but your insights are essential to shaping inquiries that will lead to real, lasting change. These facilitators will approach their work with care, independence and respect. I am confident that with the engagement of those involved, these inquiries will deliver the understanding, accountability and improvement that families, survivors and the public deserve.

I want to acknowledge that although progress is being made, we know that many children are still waiting too long for care. We owe it to children who are still waiting for spinal surgeries and to their families to go further and to do more. Every child deserves to live free of unnecessary pain and delay. That is our goal and we must not stop until we reach it. Significant efforts have been made to improve pediatric spinal services across CHI. That work continues. Waiting times are being tackled, capacity is increasing, new pathways of care are being developed and quality improvements are being embedded in every part of the service. I have listened carefully to everything that has been said. I thank all the Senators for their continued engagement on this matter.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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When is it proposed to sit again?

Teresa Costello (Fianna Fail)
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Tomorrow at 10.30 a.m.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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Is that agreed? Agreed.