Children's groups demand mandatory reporting
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LEADING children's rights charities last night urged the Government to urgently pass legislation on the mandatory reporting of child abuse.
Barnardos, the ISPCC and the Children's Rights Alliance all demanded that mandatory reporting of such abuse be put on a statutory footing.
And the One-in-Four group also called on the Government to reach an agreement with the Catholic Church that would see all information on clerical sex abuse allegations handed over to the authorities.
Barnardos called for legislation to be drafted to allow for the mandatory reporting of child abuse to the gardai and HSE.
It said the HSE report had "limited value" as some bishops had been unwilling to complete section five of the questionnaire, which had sought detailed information on complaints.
Barnardos' advocacy director Norah Gibbons said: "There is little to be gleaned from a report that is unable to look at the discrepancies between policies and procedures and practices on the ground, as Minister Andrews himself recognised.
"While welcoming the minister's referral of Cloyne to the Dublin Archdiocese Committee, we would urgently call for this report to be time limited and prompt in publication."
The ISPCC also noted the fact that the HSE audit was unable to obtain all the information it sought, leaving many questions still unanswered.
ISPCC advocacy director Mary Nicholson said mandatory reporting of abuse is now crucial.
"It is imperative that individuals, organisations and the Government tackle the gaps identified in this report in order to truly address abuse and reduce the risk to children and young people," she said.
- Ralph Riegel and Michael Brennan
