Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Safeguarding at-risk adults against abuse is of paramount importance and is taken very seriously by the Government.

I welcome the independent Law Reform Commission’s Report on ‘A Regulatory Framework for Adult Safeguarding’ which the Commission launched on 17 April. The Commission's report and recommendations are comprehensive and wide-ranging and have relevance across a range of Government Departments, including the Department of Health.

The Department of Health will carefully consider the recommendations the Commission has made that are relevant to the Department's functions and its recommendations in relation to inter-departmental cooperation. I anticipate that the other key Departments with relevant functions will do the same. The Department looks forward to working in partnership with all relevant Departments in analysing and considering in detail the comprehensive and wide-ranging recommendations and draft legislation that the Commission has published in its Report.

The Deputy may also wish to note that, separately, the Department of Health, in liaison with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, is at an advanced stage of developing a national policy on adult safeguarding specifically in respect of the health and care sector, in order to further strengthen existing protections in this sector. A public consultation closed on 2 April and the consultation feedback report will now be prepared by the Institute of Public Health. It is expected that costed sectoral policy proposals will be brought before Government later this year, which will be informed by the consultation process and also the Law Reform Commission’s report.