Richard Boyd Barrett: Where is the Redress Scheme for Survivors?
Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach for an urgent statement on historic abuse in schools, pressing for clarity on the redress scheme and the State's responsibility. He raised the case of an elderly survivor and demanded answers for many victims left waiting for redress.
What he asked
Richard Boyd Barrett challenged the Taoiseach to explain timelines for a redress scheme and to listen to survivors, including women from Cork and an elderly man whose life was permanently affected by abuse. He emphasised that victims must not be left without answers about inclusion and timing.
Survivors' questions and urgency
Boyd Barrett relayed direct, human questions: where is the redress scheme, will this survivor be included, and will he still be alive when it happens. He said it is unacceptable that victims do not know the answers and called for an urgent discussion on the State's responsibility for historic abuse in schools.
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Taoiseach, I also want to ask for a statement on the issue of historic abuse in schools. You said you're going to listen to the women from Cork who suffered the most terrible abuse. I had a man whose case I raised quite some time ago in here, he was in his 70s, abused terribly, his whole life impacted as a consequence. Coincidentally he was in with me yesterday and he was saying, where is the redress scheme? Is he going to be included in it? Will I still be alive when it happens? That's just not acceptable that people who are victims of this abuse, whose lives were damaged permanently, that they don't know the answer to those questions and we need to have an urgent discussion to answer questions for many, many people who are victims of this kind of abuse in our schools and indeed about the state's responsibility on it. In relation to Deputy Smith, in relation to the report stage amendments, I'll have a word with the Minister after this session and we'll look at that just to see about the timelines. I can take it away from here. In relation to everything else that was raised, we can discuss it at the Business Committee last Thursday. We had a very solid Business Committee last week, we have a lot of legislation to get through this week, so the order of business stands, let's come call it.
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