Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 July 2021
494. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if his attention or that of his Department has been drawn to reports of the deaths of persons in the Mosney direct provision centre in recent months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37486/21]
View answer500. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth further to correspondence he received from this Deputy (details supplied), if he will consider introducing a system whereby the number of deaths within the direct provision system is recorded and published on an annual basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37492/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 494 and 500 together.
Under established protocols governing such matters I am made aware by officials in the International Protection Accommodation Service within my Department whenever a resident within the IPAS accommodation network sadly passes away.
I am also aware of reports that circulate on media and social media regarding the deaths of residents. I would however caution that great care and compassion should always be taken in reporting on such events, particularly on social media platforms, to avoid adding to the distress of family and friends of the deceased and to afford them the necessary privacy to come to terms with their sad loss.
It is also important to point out that it is an offence under Section 26 of the International Protection Act, 2015 to publish any information that may be lead to the identification of a person as a protection applicant without their consent. This provision does not exclude former applicants including applicants who pass away while their application is under consideration. This is particularly important to note given that a deceased applicant’s family could potentially be in danger in their home country were such information to be published.
In keeping with relevant provisions in the International Protection Act 2015 safeguarding the identity of protection applicants, and, out of respect for the deceased's next of kin, I can not comment further on the specific details of any such cases.
In the event of the death of a resident at a centre, a critical incident policy is in place to provide guidelines for staff in the International Protection Accommodation Service of my Department (IPAS) and accommodation centre managers and staff. IPAS officials work closely with the centre manager to assist the person’s next of kin, if known, in accessing the supports provided by the State, and to offer supports to any residents affected by the death. Where children are involved, the family is linked with Tusla to provide relevant supports.
Under the Critical Incident Policy, any death or very serious incident that occurs within accommodation centres provided by the Department is referred to the Gardaí as a matter of course and, where appropriate, the Gardaí will in turn refer those deaths to the local Coroner’s office. Where cause of death has not already been certified by a qualified medical practitioner, investigations and inquests into the cause of a death are matters for those authorities.?
Responsibility for the formal registration and recording of all deaths in the State, including information on cause of death where known, rests with the General Register Office in the Department of Social Protection.
I can also confirm that since my response to the Deputy's correspondence on 3 March 2021 that the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) of my Department has developed a new policy on the collation and provision of statistics on deaths that occur at any of IPAS accommodation centres.
The policy, which came into effect on 1 June 2021, will be published on a new IPAS website due to launch in coming days. The policy covers procedures to be followed with regard to notification of a death of a resident to IPAS and other relevant authorities, collation of statistics, and publication of information. Alongside the policy, my Department will also be publishing statistical information on the deaths of residents going back to the earliest recorded death of a resident. These statistics, which will include a breakdown by cause of death, where known, have been collated with the assistance of the General Register Office.
