Latest news with #PatRabbitte
Irish Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
A redress scheme for school abuse survivors could become a ‘barrister-fattening exercise'
The senior civil servants who have raised concerns about the potentially enormous cost to the State of a redress scheme for victims of sexual abuse in schools have performed an important service. Our politicians and wider civil society need to think about these concerns very carefully. The bottom line is whether today's children, and those yet unborn, should be penalised for the sins of their grandparents, and even great grandparents – because that is what a redress scheme for past wrongs potentially costing tens of billions of euro will amount to. At a time when the Government is struggling to find a way to provide for the needs of the current population, the idea of devising a redress scheme on a 'far greater scale' than any other scheme in the history of the State, as the civil servants termed it, is something that needs to be thought through rigorously. The group of top civil servants based across the Departments of the Taoiseach, Public Expenditure and Finance, Education, Children and Justice have had the experience of previous public inquiries and redress schemes costing far more than was envisaged when they were established. READ MORE Successive governments have responded to pressure from the opposition and the media to get to the bottom of a variety of scandals and abuses by establishing judicial inquiries of various kinds, as well as redress schemes, without giving any great thought to their eventual cost. That cost has been borne by the exchequer, which is too often regarded in this country as some kind of bottomless money pit, rather than the fund that provides for the everyday services that keep the country's health, education and welfare services going. Of course some of the redress schemes in the past have provided well-deserved compensation to the victims of State neglect or abuse, but a large proportion of the costs of inquiries has gone into the pockets of the lawyers, and they have lasted far longer than anybody ever anticipated when they were set up. Then there is the question of whether the various judicial inquiries since the Beef Tribunal in the 1990s have actually achieved anything much for the people of the country, despite their cost. One clear achievement has been to dish out vast sums in legal fees in what was memorably described by Pat Rabbitte as 'a barrister-fattening exercise'. The commission of inquiry into the sale of a company called Siteserv to businessman Denis O'Brien, which involved a State agency, is a case in point. The controversy kicked off when Social Democrat TD Catherine Murphy claimed in the Dáil in 2015 that insider trading took place before the company was sold. A judicial inquiry under Mr Justice Brian Cregan was established by the government in 2016, but Murphy then refused to give evidence before it. Immediately hamstrung by her decision to opt out, it reported seven years later, with the final cost estimated at somewhere in excess of €70 million. And what did the tribunal find? Simply that nothing untoward had taken place during the sale process. The scandal of abuse in schools is a very different proposition, but the basic fact is that the inquiry already established, never mind the potential redress scheme, will cost a considerable amount in legal fees and will take years, possibly even decades, to come to a conclusion. The commission of inquiry into abuse in schools under Mr Justice Michael MacGrath has been given five years to report but few people in the legal world believe it will have finished its task in that time. A time frame of 10 years is probably more realistic. The decision on whether to proceed with a redress scheme will be taken after the commission has started its work. [ The Irish Times view on the inquiry into the handling of child abuse in schools: a mammoth task Opens in new window ] The question raised by the civil servants needs to be answered before that happens. Is the State liable for the abuse that took place in schools? Will the religious orders who were responsible for the abuse be held liable? Can the victims sue the orders directly? A legal mechanism must be found to force them to pay, rather than making it the responsibility of the taxpayer. Analysis by the Department of Public Expenditure warned the Government against 'the significant risks' of a 'rushed' redress scheme, 'including the assumption of risk by the State when liability should more appropriately be borne by third parties'. The report said that recent case law on the liability for the actions of school employees found that 'the State does not have such liability'. At the heart of the reservations held by the senior civil servants about an open-ended redress scheme is the impact it is likely to have on the budgets for present-day needs. The priority must be for the State to deploy all possible resources to ensure the present generation of children are properly looked after. A range of services for children are underfunded, with the Departments of Health, Education and Children having to fight tooth and nail for scarce resources. Are they to suffer even more pressure on their basic services to fund payment for the sins of the past?
The Irish Sun
20-07-2025
- Health
- The Irish Sun
Presidential race heats up as ex-health chief ‘laying the groundwork' to run & former party leader open to plum Aras gig
EX-HEALTH chief Dr Tony Holohan is preparing to run in the presidential election, it has been reported. The former Chief Medical Officer, who became a household name during the Advertisement 3 Former CMO Dr Tony Holohan is preparing to run in the presidential election Credit: REUTERS 3 Michael D Higgins' term as President of Ireland ends in November Credit: Alamy It is understood that sources close to the professor said 'plans are in progress' for him to announce his candidacy. Contacted by the 'I won't be saying anything at the minute.' Advertisement Read more on Presidential Race Last month, he married therapist Ciara Cronin in Dun Laoghaire, south He was previously embroiled in two controversies - the However, he is now reportedly in 'diplomatic training', with the doctor attending meetings at the UN buildings in Meanwhile, former Labour Party leader Pat Rabbitte has said he is open to considering a run for president. Advertisement Most read in the Irish Sun Breaking Breaking Exclusive Mr Rabbitte was leader of the party between 2002 and 2007 and served as minister for communications, energy and natural resources between 2011 and 2014. The Co 'OPTIONS OPEN' Asked on Newstalk radio on Sunday if he would rule out running for president, Mr Rabbitte said: 'No, one should always keep one's options open.' He went on to say he would 'entertain' a bid if he was approached by a 'broad cross-section of moderate opinion'. Advertisement However, he added: 'I better kill this quickly before it gathers feet: I am very, very happy to leave this challenge to others.' The Labour Party has yet to formally back a candidate. CANDIDATES TO DATE So far, two candidates have secured sufficient backing to enter the race. Advertisement Ms Connolly resigned from Labour after being turned down to be a running mate of then incumbent TD To be eligible to run, a candidate must be an Irish citizen who is 35 or older. They must be nominated either by at least 20 members of the Oireachtas or at least four local authorities. Advertisement Former or retiring presidents can nominate themselves. 3 Ex-Labour leader Pat Rabbitte has said he is open to considering a run for president Credit: PA:Press Association
Irish Examiner
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Tusla has 'never been better equipped', chair says, as he defends agency's record
There is a 'unique' tendency to point the finger at child and family agency Tusla when a challenging case becomes public 'irrespective of the facts', its chair Pat Rabbitte has said. In his foreward to Tusla's annual report for 2024, the former minister and Labour party leader defended the agency, and said by almost every metric the demand on its services was growing but it had 'never been better equipped to meet the complex challenges rushing towards it'. 'Unfortunately, there will continue to be the occasional legacy issue and even the occasional inadequate response, as well as the certainty that new and challenging cases will emerge,' he said. The agency is often constrained in how it can respond, and, in such circumstances, staff can only strive to be the best that they can. Tusla's annual report for 2024 marks the 10th anniversary of its establishment. In that time, the number of child protection referrals being made in Ireland has more than doubled, to 96,666 last year. This is the highest on record, and Tusla expects those numbers to exceed 100,000 this year. It means 385 child protection referrals were made every working day in 2024. It said the most common type of concern reported last year was emotional abuse, at 45%, followed by physical abuse at 25%, neglect at 15% and sexual abuse at 15%. An Garda Síochána accounted for close to one in three of all referrals received, while teachers accounted for one in 10. Tusla said the increase in referrals reflected rising pressures on families, including cost-of-living challenges, homelessness, domestic violence, addiction and global displacement. Demand for its services increased across the board, from education and family support to residential care and services for children seeking international protection. In terms of children seeking international protection and arriving by Ukraine, it said there was a risk it would not be able to provide services in line with standards and regulations 'due to the significant increase in the number of arrivals and the lack of sufficient resources to meet the demand'. 'This could result in a large number of children being placed in special emergency arrangements,' it said. There remains a risk of reduced public confidence in the agency due to adverse findings from statutory investigations, inspections and serious incidents. Tusla also said it also worked with more than 25,000 children in 2024, with targeted supports to ensure they attended and stayed in school. Part of these supports included after-school programmes, homework clubs, sports and arts, as well as holiday programmes. At secondary school-level, the projects were more targeted, including one-to-one support for young people to help them stay in school until they reach the Leaving Certificate. Meanwhile, it said 916 children were taken into care, including 604 taken into care for the first time. In all, 5,823 children were in care across 2024, with 87% of them in foster care. It opened an extra 47 residential care beds as it aimed to scale up its capacity. Furthermore, 2,935 young people were in aftercare, with nine in 10 of those leaving care entering employment, training or further education.
