Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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375. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills whether recent reports that an organisation (details supplied) has paid the amount it owes to victims of abuse are accurate; if so, the manner in which this has been done; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20508/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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The religious congregation referred to in the Deputy’s question was one of the 18 that was a party with the State to the 2002 Indemnity Agreement. That Agreement provided for a collective contribution of €128 million in cash, counselling and property.

In response to the call for further substantial contributions towards the costs of redress made in the aftermath of the publication of the report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (the Ryan Report), many of the congregations that were party to the 2002 Indemnity Agreement made individual offers of cash and/or property. I should stress that these offers are voluntary and do not form part of any agreement. The Congregation in question offered an additional cash contribution of €5m, of which amount €2m has been paid. In 2012 the Congregation advised that it had decided to waive its claim for legal costs from the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (CICA) and to offset this claim against the remaining cash contribution of €3m. The then Government agreed to reckon this set-off as a contribution towards the redress response, the amount of which will be calculated by applying the average discount achieved by CICA on its respondent legal costs. This exercise will be done once CICA has completed its work. The Congregation was advised that in the event that the amount of the set-off calculated on that basis is less than the €3m now outstanding the Government would expect it to make up the shortfall by way of a cash payment.

For the sake of completeness I should point out that one property offered by the Congregation under the 2002 Indemnity Agreement, the Sacred Heart Centre, Waterford, remains to be fully transferred. The completion of this transfer is at an advanced stage and the intended final recipient, the Health Service Executive, is in occupation of the property.