Mother and baby homes commission
Deputy Kelly raised survivors' disappointment with the mother and baby homes report and questioned why a commission member would speak at Oxford rather than before the Oireachtas committee. The Taoiseach said commission models do not always work well and noted he had no role in the Oxford event.
I was enjoying that.
We all know there is so much hurt out there felt by the survivors of the mother and baby homes and their families. They feel let down by the report of the commission. They also feel let down that the three members of the commission would not come before the Oireachtas children's committee to discuss their findings. Last night, however, Oxford University advertised an event to be held by the university at which a member of the mother and baby homes commission, Professor Mary Daly, will speak virtually. Is it not wrong that a member of the commission will speak at an academic event about the findings of the mother and baby homes commission but the same commission will not come before the Oireachtas children's committee, before which it has been repeatedly asked to appear? This is not an academic exercise; it is people's lives and their lived experiences. Will the Taoiseach today join me in requesting publicly that, considering this commission member's decision to appear at the Oxford event, she and her colleagues now appear also before the Oireachtas committee, where the elected Members of Dáil Éireann will get to ask questions rather than people signing up online for an academic exercise at Oxford University?
Comment on this
Collectively, we have to work this out and make up our minds on the types of inquiries we want in this country. I say that genuinely because the commission of investigation model was introduced, as the Deputy will know, to make for a better type of inquiry. In some cases it has worked; in other cases it has not worked. The commission rarely comes before Oireachtas committees because that creates-----
Comment on this
Through the Chair, could I make my point? I have no responsibility for the individuals concerned.
Comment on this
The Deputy knows that. I would have no issue with the commission coming before the committee and giving its perspective on this. However, we have an issue as to how we are to proceed if we are to initiate further inquiries into different issues, be they social or historical issues going back a long time or current issues. The current situation is not satisfactory.