Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 20 September 2018
8. Deputy Denise Mitchell asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she plans to broaden her Department's scoping exercise into the illegal adoptions scandal; the progress of the scoping exercise to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37916/18]
View answerMy question is to ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Zappone, if she will outline the number of records being examined as part of her Department's scoping exercise into the illegal adoption scandal, the progress of the scoping exercise and if she will make a statement on the matter.
Following the discovery of clear evidence of illegal birth registrations in the St. Patrick's Guild records, I directed that an analysis of adoption records be carried out to establish whether there is sufficient reliable evidence of the practice of illegal registration that can be extracted from the records of adoption agencies.
The analysis of records is being carried out by Tusla and the Adoption Authority of Ireland, AAI, and is overseen by an independent reviewer who is a former deputy director of social services in Northern Ireland. Representatives from other agencies and the reviewer have met regularly since June. The work to date has focused on agreeing the sampling methodology in consultation with a statistician, addressing the data protection issues, identifying the specific records to be reviewed and agreeing a template to be applied by social workers reviewing the records.
There are an estimated 150,000 adoption records in existence and approximately 100,000 of these are currently in the custody of the State, either in the form of Tusla or the Adoption Authority of Ireland. The review is focused on those records and a targeted sampling exercise is being carried out in the first instance owing to the volume of records involved. This targeted review will help to establish the extent of usable information that can be found in these historical records. The review will provide information to assist me in identifying more fully the scale of illegal birth registrations and in determining any necessary next steps. Tusla and the Adoption Authority of Ireland are working hard to extract and examine the records. This is a very complex task, and issues have arisen concerning data protection and the general data protection regulation, GDPR. These issues mean that the estimated timeline for the independent reviewer's report is now mid-December.
I want to get to the truth. The further analysis which has commenced, together with the ongoing work of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes, will be extremely important in helping us to shape the further steps to be taken.
Before the summer break, the revelations that tens of thousands of people in Ireland had potentially been illegally adopted, and the fact that they were unaware that they were adopted, caused widespread public commentary. Illegal adoptions have been raised by many survivors' groups for years. The Minister outlined that a scoping exercise was being undertaken by her Department. Since that time many campaigners have come forward, saying they have been met with a brick wall when they try to access information. Many have called for a full audit of adoption records. Will the Minister commit to a wholesale investigation and audit of all adoption records and the seizure of any records currently not in her possession?
Also, recent media reports suggested that much of this documentation has been in the Department of Children and Youth Affairs for years. If this information has been in this Department for years, why has it taken so long to initiate an investigation?
The Deputy asked many questions. I will start with her last one, with the preface that I am deeply concerned about the issue of illegal registrations. I am in regular communication and contact with those who are in the position of having been adopted and I listen to the concerns that they raise. I am in contact with advocates of those who are in that position and subsequent to authorising this current audit and targeted sampling of the records, I had the opportunity to meet some of them face to face. I understand what the Deputy is speaking about, and I am in regular communication with the people affected. I am deeply concerned.
As to the Deputy's last question on why action is being taken now when we knew about this for years, it is true that the Adoption Authority of Ireland, AAI, has previously spoken publicly about cases on its files in which it suspects an illegal registration. So far, however, it has not had sufficient information on file to confirm this. As I said in my press statement of 29 May, the authority is examining these unconfirmed cases to see if any further facts can be established. It is very difficult to prove these cases in the absence of good records. However, if the AAI, following this validation exercise, reaches the high level of certainty that I have spoken of, these cases will be added to the 126 that I have already confirmed and announced. It is true that those cases were identified earlier and were communicated by my Department. However, it is also true that the AAI is trying to determine whether the same level of certainty applies in these cases as to the 126 cases. The commitment is there and we are continuing to examine this.
I understand why people are frustrated. People have been shouting about this for years. The Irish Examiner has been highlighting this scandal for years. Has the Minister considered a redress scheme as part of her plan to deal with this scandal? I raise this issue because it is clear that it has caused distress to many people who have suddenly found out that they have been illegally adopted. However, serious legal issues also arise in respect of their rights and the entitlements, for example, with regard to parents' wills and property. Will the Minister give this matter serious consideration given that we may face serious legal issues down the line?
The short answer to the Deputy's final question is "Yes". That will potentially be in the mix and I would not rule it out at this stage. At the same time, the first task that we are working on is to see if we have evidence of more illegal registrations. We need that evidence to go down the route the Deputy spoke about.
To go back to one of the Deputy's earlier questions, we are looking at a sample in the first instance because of the sheer volume of the records involved. This is an extremely complex task. Those who are advocating this work are aware of that. I read the Irish Examiner as well and I am grateful for the work of Mr. Conall Ó Fátharta, as well as others who write for other newspapers, in lifting up these issues for us. What we are doing is appropriately responding in a targeted, strategic and intelligent manner. We are moving in a new direction and trying to determine whether we have other cases. There are some 150,000 people who have been adopted and 100,000 records are in the public domain. We are taking an intelligent and targeted approach to try to find any other cases where there is evidence of illegal registrations. We want early answers. We believe the quickest way to get them is to do the targeted exercise and on that basis to make the decision to move forward and do a wider piece of research for the persons affected, if necessary.
