The HSE promise to publish definitive details of numbers of children who died in care tomorrow is not good enough according to Fine Gael Children Spokesperson, Alan Shatter TD. Deputy Shatter said we also need to know the numbers of children reported to be at risk who subsequently died due to child protection failures.

 ”The public should be wary of the information that the HSE has promised will be published tomorrow at the Taoiseach’s urgings to clarify the number of children who have died in the past decade, after contact was made with the childcare and protection services managed by the former Health Boards and by the HSE since 1st January 2005.

“Since the beginning of 2009, I have sought information to ascertain during the previous 10-year period, firstly the number of children who died in care and secondly the number reported to be at risk who had died. On 5th March 2009 in a Dáil Adjournment Debate Junior Minister John Moloney, deputising for Children’s Minister Barry Andrews, stated that 21 children had died in care and information concerning the numbers who have died having been reported to be at risk was being compiled by the HSE. From recent revelations it seems that no serious attempt was made by the HSE to compile the latter information nor was there any serious follow-up on the part of Government or the Minister for Children to obtain it until the publication by Fine Gael in March 2010 of the report into the tragic death of Tracey Fay. We also know that the number given of children who died in care in March 2009 was wrong.

“We know from information available that annually over the past decade thousands of reports of children at risk have not been properly investigated or assessed by the former Health Boards or the HSE. We also know that, where assessments or investigations have taken place, different practices have been applied by the 32 local health offices through which our childcare and protection services operate. There is little doubt that many children who required protection were failed by the State and remained at risk. The enormity of the true extent of that failure will only be known when we are informed definitively, not only of the number of children who have died in care, but also of the number who died in the absence of appropriate intervention following their being reported to be at risk, and the background circumstances of each child.

“It is not only extraordinary but scandalous that this information has not previously been properly collated by Government, the Department of Health and Children, the former Health Boards and the HSE. It is beyond belief that this information was never sought by Government until I raised the issue in the Dáil and that a succession of Ministers for Children did not seek it on their own initiative in the context of their knowledge that both the Health Boards and the HSE were failing to properly ensure the application since 1999 of our Child Protection Guidelines.

“The promise now made that by Friday evening of this week the HSE will make available definitive figures of the number of children who have died in care but will continue to fail to publish details of the numbers who died subsequent to being reported to be at risk is not good enough. It is shameful and a stark illustration of the ongoing failure of the Government to ensure the proper management of our childcare services.”

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