In January 2021, the Government first wrote to the religious orders asking them to contribute to the redress scheme for mother and baby institutions. A series of meetings between the Minister and the religious orders began to take place and we had an update on those negotiations this week. According to the Irish Examiner, they have been put on the back burner. We have now been hearing the same thing from the Government for more than two years, namely, the religious orders should make a significant contribution to redress, but no progress has been made. It now seems likely the orders that profited from illegal vaccine trials, illegal adoptions - the list goes on - will not contribute a red cent to redress. It is despicable and it is shameful. As we all know money is at the root of the discriminatory exclusion of tens of thousands of survivors from the redress scheme, why is the Government allowing the religious orders that ran these institutions to run rings around it and walk away from their obligation to contribute to redress?

Nothing has been put on the back burner. At the time, I said we were initiating a process with a number of the religious orders. I met a number of them. That process is ongoing. I also always said the priority was the passage of the legislation that would allow for the-----

Is there an update on negotiations?

-----payment of redress. As I said, those negotiations are ongoing. I do not believe one can have a genuine negotiation and hold one in public at the same time, so once those negotiations are completed we will bring an update to Dáil Éireann.