Commission's complex work spans decades of societal change
Following a wish expressed by many victims/survivors involved in the Scoping Inquiry, the commission will examine the handling of sexual abuse in all types of schools, which means there will be hundreds under consideration.
Investigating of every allegation that may be reported to the commission would be difficult within the allotted five-year time frame, which is why there will be a sampling approach.
Sampling also occurred during the Murphy Inquiry, which was a commission of investigation into the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic archdiocese of Dublin which began in 2006.
The original brief was for Judge Yvonne Murphy to report within 18 months, but such was the volume of evidence and allegations concerning the abusive behaviour of a sample batch of 46 priests, it took three years.
It's understood that Mr Justice Michael MacGrath and his team of commissioners will determine the sampling method when they have a clearer idea of numbers.
The scoping inquiry into allegations of abuse at schools run by religious orders for example found that there were 2,395 allegations of sexual abuse in respect of 308 schools run by religious orders.
The allegations were made in respect of 884 distinct alleged abusers between 1927 to 2013.
The commission of investigation announced today will consider child sexual abuse during that same time period, however, there's "a realistic limitation" on the ability of the commission to conduct a "meaningful investigation" into incidents occurred long ago.
Regardless, it's a significant timespan across decades of huge societal changes in Ireland.
Meeting its five-year deadline will not be easy for the commission, which many agree, will require adequate resources.
There is considerable concern around the issue of redress and the fact the Government had not pinned this down before it made today's announcement.
It said further work is being done to examine the matter of financial redress and how any future scheme could be funded.
One in Four's CEO Deirdre Kenny said she was "very concerned" that there was no clarity. She described it as "a missed opportunity" for the Government.
"Redress is something that is really important. It's not necessarily about financial support for people, it's about accountability," she said
While she acknowledged the complexity of the situation, she said Government needed to move swiftly, be clear with survivors and communicate sooner rather than later.
Minister for Education Helen McEntee .
She said religious orders and institutions haven't come forward in past redress schemes and if necessary "levers of the State", would be considered to secure funding.
What is less clear - and may emerge as "further work" on the question of redress continues - is how much the State will be liable, considering that all schools will be investigated.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Extra.ie
an hour ago
- Extra.ie
NTMA in €5m scam outrage as agency duped by voice 'phishing' and fake invoice
Fraudsters used voice impersonation and a fake invoice to scam the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) out of €5million, can reveal. The agency, which the State has entrusted with the management of billions of euros for the taxpayer, realised in recent days that it had been the victim of a sophisticated voice phishing attack. Voice phishing is when scammers impersonate someone on the phone to gain information and the trust of the intended target. Pearse Doherty. Pic: Fran Veale Sources with knowledge of the attack told that it appears to have been executed with 'insider knowledge' after it managed to bypass several layers of security protocol. Sinn Féin's finance spokesman, Pearse Doherty, has called for the NTMA to be immediately hauled before the Oireachtas Finance Committee to explain how an agency that has control over billions of euros could be susceptible to such a breach. understands that the scam relates to the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) arm of the agency and that it was only discovered in recent days. Pic: Getty Images The scammers are understood to have impersonated a legitimate entity that has dealings with the ISIF in order to trick the organisation into making a payment to a fraudulent account. However, there is confusion over how the attack was successful, given the protective procedures in place at the NTMA. The Department of Finance was only informed of the issue after queries from Mr Doherty told 'The question here is, with the amount of money the NTMA holds on deposit for the State, how such an organisation would be vulnerable to a phishing scam. It is seriously questionable. Pearse Doherty. Pic: Sam Boal/Collins Photos 'They hold billions of Irish money. We will need to hear very quickly from the NTMA how this has happened. I'll be asking the chair of the Oireachtas Finance Committee to bring them before the committee as quickly as possible.' Mr Doherty said that despite his party calling for the NTMA to divest from investing in Israeli companies in occupied Palestinian territories, they 'haven't had a blemish for a long, long time'. 'It has dealt with our debt through difficult times, and has really impeccable standing. I'm shocked that an organisation has left billions in taxpayers' money vulnerable. Pic: Shutterstock 'The processes here should be robust enough, given the level of money they handled, in the billions, to make sure these types of scams… they should not be vulnerable to any scam, no matter how sophisticated. I'm quite shocked,' he said. In a statement, a spokesman for the NTMA said that it notified An Garda Síochána once it detected the fraud and immediately worked to contain the issue. Following the detection by the NTMA of a fraudulent payment call to the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund issued by an external party, in line with protocols, the NTMA took immediate steps to assess and contain the potential impact. Frank O'Connor. Pic: Gareth Chaney/Collins 'The fraudulent payment call was immediately reported to the relevant authorities, including An Garda Síochána, and investigations and recovery efforts are ongoing. Given the ongoing investigations and active recovery efforts, we can't comment further,' they said. The NTMA, headed by CEO Frank O'Connor, is responsible for managing public assets and liabilities prudently for long-term benefit on behalf of the State. It oversees the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, which invests in projects that support economic activity and employment in Ireland. The ISIF is mandated to invest on a commercial basis to support economic activity and employment in Ireland. According to its 2023 annual report, the NTMA had € 35 billion in investment capital. It is due to publish its annual report on Tuesday. The scam is the most significant to hit an Irish agency since the ransomware attack that hit the Health Service Executive in May 2021. The devastating ransomware attack was also deployed through phishing. A malicious email with a spreadsheet attachment was sent to HSE staff, which, when opened, installed malware that later enabled the attack, which infected 80% of all HSE systems and took four months to resolve, resulting in major disruption to the country's health system. The ransomware attack, carried out by cybercriminals linked to the Russian hacking group Conti, resulted in the theft of data from around 100,000 patients and cost the State almost € 150 million to rectify. Almost 500 lawsuits have been taken against the HSE arising from the data breach caused by the attack. A report into that attack criticised the HSE's 'flat' IT network design, outdated operating systems, lack of multi-factor authentication, and insufficient cyber threat detection. Governance gaps were also highlighted, noting that IT leadership was fragmented and under-resourced, making strategic coordination of cybersecurity difficult. Furthermore, contingency plans and incident response procedures were either missing or inadequate, leaving the organisation scrambling to react. The Government and HSE have insisted that no ransom was paid and that the decryption key was provided freely by the attackers, though this did little to alleviate the extensive disruption already inflicted. Since the attack, the HSE has undertaken substantial efforts to modernise its cybersecurity infrastructure, but the report warns that similar vulnerabilities may still exist across other public sector organisations. The HSE cyberattack led to an overhaul of IT governance and continuous monitoring, as well as a proactive national strategy to defend Ireland's public institutions against evolving cyber threats.
Irish Independent
2 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Drogheda Mayor announces start date for next phase of major Louth link road
This will connect Newtown to the railway track north of Aston Village while Louth County Council and the politicians lobby the Government for the phase three funding to put a 16million euro bridge over the railway line. In a new monthly report for the citizens of the town the Mayor also confirmed that the County Council's programme of road works for 2025 is ready to begin. She said: "Bothar Brugha is being resurfaced for the Safe Route to School programme and Termonfeckin Playground will be officially opened by me and Minister Dara Calleary on July 22 next at 6pm. "I set up a development group in 2020 in order to apply for the funding for a playground and it has been one of my greatest pleasures to see children enjoying the space that my own children get to experience in the village. "Work is also being completed on the footpath to the village along the Strand Road, grant-aided by the Community Recognition Fund." The Mayor said the Council has been busy in many areas such as investigating 14 waste complaints, drainage works, placing 47 people in homeless accommodation, 45 properties were also re-let. She said this is a drop in the ocean since they have over 5,000 people on the housing waiting list. Mayor Hall revealed Housing projects in Louth are over target by 5pc and unlike most other parts of the country, and are predicted to be over target by 48pc next year. She also said Louth County Libraries had begun the Summer Stars reading programme and received many book donations from President Michael D Higgins. She confirmed that the Louth Sport Partnerships are rolling out the Heroutdoors programme such as safe sea swimming training, rowing and paddle boarding workshops. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more She said on sustainability County Hall in Dundalk has reduced energy consumption by 33pc in the past decade and work continues to reduce the carbon footprint in our civic spaces. During the past week she also had meetings with Louth Local Development, attended the Drogheda Cycling AGM, and welcomed the Judges of the Pride of Place Awards in the Droichead Arts Centre as the Boyne Valley Camino is nominated by Louth County Council. She helped Drogheda Tidy Towns clean up the area for the Leinster Fleadh, attended a green procurement webinar by the Association of Irish Local Government, spoke on a panel about affordable housing at the Tom Johnson Summer School, and opened the Termonfeckin half marathon. She has also submitted two documents on ideas for the Louth Tourism Strategy that is being developed, firstly looking at the potential of Drogheda and then the surrounding areas.
Irish Examiner
3 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Tens of thousands take to streets for annual July 12 Orange Order parades
Tens of thousands are set to take to the streets across Northern Ireland for the Orange Order's annual July 12 parades. The festivities will be spread across 19 main locations to mark the 334th anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne where the Protestant King William of Orange triumphed over the Catholic King James II. It comes after the burning of bonfires at an estimated 300 locations in loyalist neighbourhoods across the region on Thursday and Friday nights. On Sunday morning, an Orange Order parade has been permitted to pass Ardoyne shops in north Belfast restricted to one band and 50 members of the order. The Orange Order morning parade makes its way along the Crumlin Road towards the Ardoyne shops in Belfast in 2024 (Brian Lawless/PA) It is a return parade at a former flashpoint which traditionally took place on the evening of July 12 often resulting in violent scenes. Meanwhile, the traditional July 13 events organised by the Royal Black Preceptory in the village of Scarva, Co Armagh will take place on Monday. The event includes a parade as well as a sham fight between actors playing rival monarchs William and James. While most of the bonfires passed off peacefully, there was condemnation after effigies of migrants in a boat were burned on a bonfire in Moygashel, Co Tyrone. Effigies of migrants in a boat burn atop a bonfire at Moygashel, Co Tyrone, ahead of events to mark the Twelfth of July (Niall Carson/PA) Pictures of the Irish rap band Kneecap and Irish flags were also burned on other pyres. But the most contentious bonfire was located on a site containing asbestos and close to an electricity sub station off the Donegall Road in south Belfast. Of all the loyal order parades to take place on Saturday, around 30 have been officially categorised as sensitive by the Parades Commission. Locations of sensitive parades this year include Belfast, Coleraine, Keady, Dunloy, Rasharkin, Strabane, Newtownabbey, Maghera, Newtownbutler, Portadown, Glengormley and Bellaghy. More than 4,000 police officers and police staff will be working on July 12. On the 11th night, around 1,200 officers were deployed to monitor public safety at bonfires. The cost of policing parades and bonfires in Northern Ireland through spring and summer was £6.1 million last year, a figure that was up £1.5 million on the previous year. The bill, which covers the period April 1 to August 31, also includes the cost of policing republican commemorations around Easter and events to mark the mid-August anniversary of the introduction of internment without trial during the Troubles. The PSNI expects the costs in 2025 to be higher still. This is due to falling police numbers and the resultant increased reliance on paying overtime to ensure enough officers are on duty for the events. Chief Constable Jon Boutcher has urged mutual respect in the marking of events. Northern Ireland's Chief Constable Jon Boutcher (Liam McBurney/PA) 'These celebrations and others that occur throughout the year are a valued part of Northern Ireland's local history and culture,' he said. 'They can and should be occasions where communities come together in a spirit of inclusiveness and pride, through local traditions. 'Mutual respect is the foundation of strong, safe communities. 'There is no place for hate or intimidation—only space for celebration that welcomes and celebrates not divides. 'Our officers will be on the ground throughout the weekend, working in partnership with community leaders, event organisers, and local representatives to support lawful, peaceful, and family-friendly events. However where necessary, we will take firm and proportionate action to keep people safe. 'Our priority remains the safety and wellbeing of everyone. 'Let's ensure that this weekend reflects the very best of our communities: proud, respectful, and united.'
