Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

570. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs his plans to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child second optional protocol. [47416/19]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I am strongly committed to the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol. Preparations to ratify the protocol are at an advanced stage and my Department, in partnership with the Department of Justice and Equality, has made a submission to the Office of the Attorney General, proposing the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol.

To date, ratification has been pending to ensure that all of the necessary measures have been put in place to fully comply with the obligations of the convention. The recent enactments of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 and the Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Act 2017 by the Department of Justice and Equality have fulfilled a number of the protocol’s requirements.

Compliance with the Convention is now being examined by the Office of the Attorney General. On receipt of confirmation of compliance and acceptance of the proposal, I will seek a Government decision on the ratification of the Convention at the earliest opportunity.

I greatly look forward to advancing progress on this important area of work and moving towards the confirmation of Ireland’s ratification of the Second Optional Protocol in the near future.