Written answers
Tuesday, 19 October 2010
Department of Education and Science
Residential Institutions Redress Scheme
9:00 am
Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Question 141: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills the number of survivors of institutional child abuse who came before the redress board in each year since its establishment; the number who obtained redress in each year and the number refused; the total amount of money that has been paid out to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37238/10]
Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that a total of 14,295 applications to the Residential Institutions Redress Board have been processed up to the 18th October 2010. This has resulted in 13,400 awards being made to individual survivors with 895 being refused or resulting in no award. This figure can be broken down as follows to reflect the statistics on an annual basis as requested by the Deputy: 2003 - 535 awards made 52 - Refused/Nil Award 2004 - 1819 awards made 19 - Refused/Nil Award 2005 - 2120 awards made 80 - Refused/Nil Award 2006 - 2473 awards made 193 - Refused/Nil Award 2007 - 2519 awards made 112 - Refused/Nil Award 2008 - 2382 awards made 243 - Refused/Nil Award 2009 - 1118 awards made 116 - Refused/Nil Award 2010 to date - 434 awards made 80 - Refused/Nil Award The total amount of money paid out in awards made to date is €842.5 million.
Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Question 142: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills if she will detail the new reparation fund which has been provided by the religious orders for the survivors of institutional child abuse; the total amount of the fund which is in cash and the amount in property; the way the Government proposes to distribute the fund to survivors; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37239/10]
Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The Government announced its intention to use €110m of the offers of contributions to be made by the religious Congregations over the next few years to establish a Statutory Fund to support the needs of survivors of residential institutional child abuse on 15th April last. As the Deputy will recall the Congregations offered additional contributions, which they valued at €348.51m, in addition to their original contribution under the 2002 Indemnity Agreement. The property elements of the offers are being examined to determine their potential use to the State.
The proposal to establish a Statutory Fund is in keeping with the all party Motion passed by Dáil Éireann, supporting the proposal for a Trust to be set up and managed by the State for the support of victims and for other education and welfare purposes. My Department has undertaken a wide ranging consultation process, meeting with groups representing survivors of institutional abuse, the religious Congregations and other interested parties. Press advertisements also invited views and submissions as to the exact nature of the fund, how it will operate and the uses to which it will be put. The views expressed in the responses together with the views from the Department's engagement with groups and other interested parties are being considered and my Department expects to report to Government shortly on the matter.
Robert Northall
Posted on 21 Oct 2010 3:38 pm (Report this comment)
I would like complain most strongly about your Countries shameful lip service to Consultation over the ProposedStatutory Fund
This has only been announced in The (Irish) Independent and another News Paper only published in Limerick
Both of these News Papers are only published in Southern Ireland!
The Survivors of the Irish Industrial Schools are all over the World
Many live in the UK
The Global awareness of this �Consultation Process is very poor; Just type Statutory Fund into any search engine?
The Government has been consulting with C.O.R.I. and Government Mandated Survivors Organisations (some of which have been investigated for misappropriation of Funds) for quite some time; but Survivors are ignored; and the period of so called Consultation very short?
To use the word Proposed assumes; that this fund may not happen; from your Governments stance on this matter it is as Proposed as Hitlers annexation of Poland! The word Inevitable should have been used.
I would also like you to address the fact that your government refuse to correspond on this matter; Brian Cowen keeps on passing on my correspondence to Mary Coughlan (He is ducking the issues), she for her part sends me acknowledgement of the fact that Brian Cowen has asked her to respond to me personally! Which she fails to do?
When the additional compensation for Survivors was announced by C.O.R.I. there was a general expectation that; that is what it was?
I understand that his heinous Fund; is to replace the Education and Welfare Fund; which means taking money away from Survivors.
I strongly oppose the setting up of the Trust Fund on behalf of my wife who is a victim of your Country!
I also assert that the Original Indemnity Deal struck with C.O.R.I. is unconstitutional: Article 44.2.2 of the Constitution, states quite clearly that the State guarantees not to endow any religion.
This needs to be revisited?