Written answers

Tuesday, 28 February 2017

Department of Justice and Equality

Restorative Justice

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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109. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of women that have applied to the restorative justice scheme for survivors of the Magdalen laundries. [9731/17]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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110. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of women that have received the maximum amount of compensation afforded under the restorative justice scheme for survivors of the Magdalen laundries. [9732/17]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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111. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of women that have accepted lesser amounts than they applied for under the restorative justice scheme for survivors of the Magdalen laundries. [9733/17]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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112. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applicants under the restorative justice scheme for survivors of the Magdalen laundries that have received lesser amounts than they applied for due to inaccurate and or missing records. [9734/17]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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113. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applications made under the restorative justice scheme for survivors of the Magdalen laundries that have been rejected. [9735/17]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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114. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applications made under the restorative justice scheme for survivors of the Magdalen laundries that have been rejected due to inaccurate and or missing records. [9736/17]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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115. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of interviews which have taken place with women that have made applications under the restorative justice scheme for survivors of the Magdalen laundries. [9737/17]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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116. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of the women that were interviewed that have accepted less compensation than the amount applied for under the restorative justice scheme for survivors of the Magdalen laundries. [9738/17]

Photo of Frances FitzgeraldFrances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 109 to 116, inclusive, together.

The Magdalen Laundries Restorative Justice Ex Gratia Scheme was set up following the publication of the report in February, 2013 of an Inter-Departmental Committee to establish the facts of the State's involvement with the Magdalen Laundries. It was chaired by then Senator Martin McAleese and it is commonly referred to as the McAleese report. The material in the Report relates to 10 different institutions which were run by 4 different Orders of nuns over a period of 70 years. Although there was no finding in the McAleese Report which indicated that the State had any liability in the matter, following the report’s publication the Taoiseach issued a State apology to the women.

Mr. Justice Quirke was asked by the Government to make recommendations on an appropriate redress scheme for those who were in the 10 Magdalen laundries that were the subject of the McAleese Report. The Government also included in the scheme the laundry that was attached to Stanhope Street Training School and later also decided to include a 12th institution, the Training School in Summerhill.

The Scheme provides for lump sum payments varying from €11,500 to €100,000 depending on the length of stay in the institution concerned. Further, each woman is entitled to a top-up payment to bring her weekly income from the Irish State up to the equivalent of the Irish Contributory Pension.

To date 819 applications have been received by my Department all of which have been processed. No application was refused due to inaccurate or missing records. However, 101 applications were refused because the applicants were not resident in a relevant institution.

If there is a discrepancy, or in cases where the religious congregations have an incomplete or no record for an applicant, my officials carry out a thorough examination, checking whatever records are available from other departments, agencies and institutions to support the application. The records of the religious congregations are not regarded as decisive; they are just one factor that is taken into consideration. Interviews were conducted with 70 applicants for whom the religious congregations concerned did not have records and of those 70 applicants, 2 were refused entry to the scheme.

Over €25 million has been paid out to 669 women under the Scheme, of whom 118 qualified for the maximum lump sum payable under the scheme. In addition there are a further 17 applicants who also qualify for the maximum payment but have not yet been paid. Of these 17 applicants, 9 are deemed to lack capacity but will be paid following the commencement of the Assisted Decision Making legislation. The remaining 8 applicants who qualified for the maximum payment are deceased and payments will issue to their estate once a Grant of Probate issues. The Deputy will be aware that Judge Quirke recommended that where an applicant was deceased before a payment issued that the maximum amount payable to her estate should be €50,000.

Each application is assessed on an individual basis taking into account any available records, documents and statements including the applicant's testimony. Processing of all applications under the Scheme operates on the premise that the testimony of the applicant is correct and the officers processing the application then seek to verify the application by checking appropriate records. If there are records and they are consistent with the application, then an offer is made. It should be noted that the majority of applicants who were resident in the 10 Magdalen institutions fall into this category.

In relation to the question concerning applicants accepting lesser awards than were claimed, it should be noted that the award is determined solely by the proven length of time spent in the institution concerned. In some instances an applicant may believe that they spent a longer period of time in an institution than the available records support. Usually, when an applicant is shown all the available records, which include religious, primary school, employment records and and so on, they are satisfied, given the lapse of time involved, that the available records provide a more accurate account of the length of stay in the institution. The exact number of applications that category is unavailable but I am informed that the number is not significant.

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