We have a slight change in running order. The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, has agreed that we will take Senator Kennelly's item first.

I welcome the Minister of State back to the floor of the Seanad. It is unfortunate that I have to raise this Commencement matter again. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, for coming to receive it. I need to raise this issue of critical and urgent importance for the people of north Kerry, specifically the need for immediate commencement of short-term flood relief works in the Listowel and Killocrim areas. In March of this year, the Office of Public Works, OPW, gave a very clear commitment that temporary flood mitigation works would be carried out in both areas. That commitment was made in response to the disastrous flooding that struck in November - eight months ago - where homes, roads, farmlands and businesses were simply destroyed and, in some cases, devastated. In Listowel, several families were forced to evacuate and some are still not back in their homes. That is the worrying thing. In Killocrim, entire stretches of agricultural land were submerged.

The emotional and financial impact of that flooding is still being felt. This is July and the last time I spoke to the Minister of State, the sun was shinning. At the start of this week, there was a status yellow rain alert in north Kerry again. It sent ripples of fear through people. The rain that fell was more than a status yellow warning. As I said, the sun was shinning in July but in July 2022, the sun was also shining. We experienced three storm floods in that month that caused havoc, wreckage and carnage in all the areas.

We had a Listowel municipal district meeting on Monday morning with all the public representatives. They went crazy when they were told there was no starting date. They do not know what the OPW is playing at. They all made their feelings known on behalf of the people in those areas. It is not the representatives doing the war dance, but the people in the affected areas who had their houses flooded. I mentioned it to the Minister of State here that things went from saving homes to saving lives on that November day. That is how critical it was. I am not making it up. People are living in fear. Let us be absolutely clear that we are fast approaching the period when there is a threat of heavy rainfall, which we are seeing. The communities of Listowel and Killocrim cannot go through another season vulnerable to the same devastation they experienced just eight months ago. These short-term works are not optional, they are urgent and overdue.

It is recess next week. The severity of the November flooding has been acknowledged. The reports are done and everything is done. The waiting is over, as far as I am concerned. Therefore, I call on the Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW to confirm to the public and the people of north Kerry when exactly these works will begin. I thank the Minister of State.

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. I assure him that the OPW and Kerry County Council are committed to progressing short-term flood relief measures for Listowel and Killocrim. Following a flood event in Listowel in November 2024, Kerry County Council engaged consultants to provide a report on the flood event and its findings were presented to the municipal district on 30 April 2025. They are now available to the public. Kerry County Council has discussed the findings of this report with the OPW.

The consultants, Malachy Walsh and Partners, are currently carrying out an assessment for the progression of the viable short-term flood defence works in Listowel and Killocrim as recommended in the flooding report. The outputs of this assessment, which may require hydraulic modelling, will be discussed with my officials upon completion. It will then be open to Kerry County Council to apply to the OPW for funding for temporary or interim measures, pending the commencement of the Listowel flood relief scheme. My officials will continue to engage with Kerry County Council and the consultants.

Funding for these measures can be considered through the OPW’s minor flood mitigation works and coastal protection scheme. This minor works scheme was introduced by the OPW on an administrative, non-statutory basis in 2009. The purpose of the scheme is to provide funding to local authorities to undertake minor flood mitigation works or studies to address localised fluvial flooding and coastal protection problems within their administrative areas.

When I was here two months ago, I said to the Senator that I was working extremely hard to try to deliver on this scheme. I made it clear that it was a number one priority but working together is far better than working apart. I hear comments coming from Kerry. I am in the job a number of months. I have seriously taken this upon myself to deliver. You cannot do something in two months or three months.

When designing a scheme like this, it has to be realised that 95% of the works are under the ground. That is the hardest part of delivering on a scheme, no matter where it is. There is one chance to get it right and if the rules and regulations are not heeded, you could end up in a different situation, meaning it could be delayed a little longer. However, I can assure the Senator that while people want to blame the OPW, I am waiting on a report from Kerry County Council to come back to my office. When I have it, it will determine the next phase and when I will be able to give the Senator starting and delivery times. What occurred happened in 2024. I spoke to the Senator in May and I have now moved things to the point where I hope to have a date in the near future for delivery on the scheme.

I thank the Minister of State for the reply. It is very unfortunate that this is my third time to get the same response on the floor of the Seanad, and I am probably getting the same response from Kerry County Council. The Minister of State said we will all work together, but obviously some are not pulling together. If Kerry County Council is blaming the OPW and the OPW is blaming Kerry County Council, where do the people in the area stand? It is not fair to stand up again and say it is Kerry County Council’s problem when it is saying it is the OPW’s.

I realise the Minister of State has been in the job for only a couple of months and that he is probably working on the problem, and I really value his word on it, but I am getting the same response today that I got four months ago. We are heading towards September and the winter period but no one knows who is telling the truth. I ask that the Minister of State’s Department contact Kerry County Council this minute or that Kerry County Council contact the Department so both can sit down in the next 24 hours to come up with a start date for the works.

There is a job finishing in Listowel at the moment through the OPW. The promise was that it would move the staff and contractors down to the banks of the River Feale that burst in order to do the works. I do not know whether that promise was real. I ask that the Minister of State contact Kerry County Council today and come to a conclusion on this. What is happening is not on.

That is unfair. A report has to be complied with. It has gone to Kerry. In fairness to the council, it is examining it and will come back to us. We are working together. There are no people working apart. Both the council and my officials are working on this. It is not as straightforward as the Senator thinks. Nobody in my Department gave a commitment to move machines to the affected area. They would not because the necessary work has to be carried out first. I told the Senator on the last occasion what happened at Lough Funshinagh, County Roscommon, where the i’s were not dotted and the t’s were not crossed. It ended up in a judicial review. We cannot come along and just do A, B and C; we have to comply with the report and follow through on it. I am working with Kerry County Council.

Since I came into office, the number of schemes at construction has increased from five to 11, with two more to follow. There are 100 schemes on the go at present and we have given a total of €4.2 million to Kerry County Council. We are working together; that is how you deliver. I am on the Senator’s side, just as I am on the side of the people of Listowel. Every TD in the Dáil is on to me asking the same question. I am working to deliver on the scheme in question, but we have to work together in doing so. There is no point in telling me my team is doing one thing and another is doing something else.

It is not happening.

The local authority and my officials are working together.

I am sorry but that is not happening.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. The Minister of State, Deputy Canney, is very welcome to the House. This is the first opportunity I have had to debate him in his new role. I congratulate him on his appointment and wish him every success with it.

The subject I am going to discuss, driving test waiting times, is nothing new to the Minister of State. The average waiting time for counties Monaghan and Cavan is approximately 28 weeks, with the national average having stood at approximately 18.4 weeks. Granted, the figures are significantly lower than the crazy high at the end of April, 27 weeks. I acknowledge progress is being made by the Road Safety Authority, RSA, but the waiting period is still too long. I believe 16.3 weeks is now the national average. While I compliment everybody involved on the progress, including the Minister of State, the waiting period is still too long. The Minister of State does not need me to tell him that a person from rural Ireland faces public transport challenges that those from other parts of the country do not have to endure, and that the car is the only show in town for somebody in a rural area who wishes to get from A to B. The delay is very frustrating for those waiting on driving tests, some of whom might have jobs that hang on a successful test. There is a very frustrating experience all around.

I welcome the fact that the RSA has issued a ten-week waiting-time target. This is to be achieved by September, which is only six weeks away. I welcome the Minister of State’s ambition but just wonder how realistic the target is. I would be delighted to hear his comments on it. I understand that about 100,000 people are waiting for a driving test. I wonder how practical the target of the RSA, while welcome, is. There is a need for more staff and for staff to work additional hours at weekends. In fairness to the Minister of State, I have heard him saying all these things. We also need more driving test centres.

We have a problem with the system in that there are crazy delays. We need to address this immediately. We need a system that works properly for people and that will, I hope, make the frustration that many are enduring a thing of the past. I acknowledge and welcome that the Minister of State has grabbed this matter by the scruff of the neck since entering his Department. Perhaps he could update us on the latest waiting times for counties Monaghan and Cavan, and indeed elsewhere. What is the position on staff recruitment and new driving test centres? What is the plan to ensure a properly functioning system once we get over the current hump?

I thank the Senator for raising this important matter. As he will be aware, under the Road Safety Authority Act 2006, the RSA has statutory responsibility for the national driver testing service. The service has experienced unprecedented demand in recent years, with the number of applications for a driving test having increased significantly since 2021.

In 2024, a total of 253,850 driving tests were conducted, up from 196,853 in 2023, making it a record year for the delivery of tests. The delivery of this number of tests was possible only because of the support of our testing staff, through significant levels of overtime and operational efficiencies.

The return to an average waiting time of ten weeks for a driver test is a priority for me. To that end, I have engaged extensively with the CEO of the RSA. Ten weeks reflects a service level agreement that has been in place.

At my instruction, the RSA published its comprehensive action plan to return the target average driver test waiting time to ten weeks by early September. This plan sets out the actions that will be taken by the RSA to achieve this goal. The plan also includes targets against which the RSA is required to report to me on a fortnightly basis. The latest report on the plan has now been published and it is positive that there continues to be progress in reducing the average waiting times. As of 12 July, the RSA was reporting that the average national waiting time for a driving test was approximately 14 weeks. This builds on the progress made during May and June and is an improvement of almost 13 weeks on the waiting time at the end of April, 27 weeks.

This progress has been achieved through a number of positive actions taken by the RSA, including accelerated driver tester training, which was lacking, booking system management and extended testing hours, including in the evening, at weekends and on bank holidays. It is vital that this positive trend continue and that the RSA, at a minimum, meet the targets set out in its published plan for restoring the service to an average waiting time of ten weeks under the service level agreement. Should any deviations from projected timelines arise, these must be immediately escalated to my Department.

The RSA has also been instructed to make contingency preparation to deal with any potential slippage that might emerge in relation to this timeline, which should be ready to be activated as quickly as possible should that need arise.

In relation to Cavan and Monaghan, while progress is being made I must acknowledge that there are variations across the test centres behind the national average, with some candidates waiting for longer than the average and some having a shorter wait. At the end of June the average waiting time at the Cavan test centre was 12 weeks, which is below the national average and a significant improvement on the 22-week waiting time recorded at the end of April, before the recovery plan was adopted. On the other hand there is still work to be done on reducing waiting times in Monaghan. Although wait times have reduced by four weeks between the end of April and the end of June from 22 weeks to 18 weeks, this is still well above what is acceptable. With 30 additional testers entering the service this month, I expect we will see considerable progress at all locations by the end of July.

I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive response. I will take this opportunity to compliment him.. Since he came into office, he has grabbed this issue by the scruff of the neck and it is clear that progress is being made. I am disappointed, however, in the times for Monaghan. It just seems to be a bit of an outlier in that regard. I ask that the Minister of State would give particular focus to Monaghan to bring it to a level similar to the national average and to that of the neighbouring county of Cavan. That would be our ambition. Is there a particular focus on Monaghan bearing in mind that the wait time seems to be abnormally high there compared to elsewhere? Is there a specific reason for that? The ten-week average by September and the fact that the Minister of State is getting fortnightly reports is very positive. I thank the Minister of State for his work. It is clear that the issue is being tackled and taken seriously. I thank him for his work on that.

I thank the Senator again for raising this matter. It is important and the Senator's constructive contributions are very much welcomed. I reiterate that the Government recognises the need to address the longstanding issue in relation to the service provision and to ensure that a reliable and high-quality driver testing service is available throughout the State. I understand that the unacceptable waiting times for driving tests are having a significant impact on people across the country, including in Monaghan and Cavan and especially for those residing in rural areas where public transport may be limited.

My Department and the RSA are acutely aware of these challenges and are working to bring the times back to the service level agreement target of ten weeks as quickly as possible. One of my first actions as Minister of State was to ensure the RSA had a plan in place to deliver the target. They are now reporting on the plan to me fortnightly, as well as publishing their progress for the public to see it transparently. I am pleased to report that. I am sure Senators would welcome that the progress made since April has been significant with both Cavan and Monaghan seeing their respective waiting times come down at ten weeks and four weeks respectively. Achieving the ten-week target is important not only in terms of the learner driver's experience of the service, it is also a vital component in the delivery of our road safety strategy, on which we all have an ambition. Based on the progress to date I am confident the RSA will achieve its targets in September and I will be managing it on a fortnightly basis.

I thank the Cathaoirleach's office for choosing this Commencement matter this morning. I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, to the Chamber to discuss a Galway project. It is great to have a Galway Minister of State who also has a huge interest in rail. Light rail for Galway is a concept that first emerged in the 1970s when the then Chamber of Commerce visited Freiburg in Germany to see how their system served that city. Each decade since there have been renewed calls for a light rail system to service the city and suburbs. The present Gluas group, all volunteers, have campaigned very successfully to a point where there was almost unanimous support among communities, businesses and institutions for a Galway light rail system. The Gluas group recently met groups from the city and county councils and also presented to Oireachtas Members here in the audiovisual room. I acknowledge my colleague Deputy Catherine Connolly for facilitating that, and the work done by a former Member of this House, Pauline O'Reilly, in supporting and pushing this project.

There has been overwhelming support for the project. Galway city was one of the worst traffic-congested cities in Europe in 2024. It was the ninth worst. There are costs to traffic congestion. It affects people's lives and their well-being. There are losses to businesses, along with frustrations and all of that. There are also decisions to avoid the city for investment, which is another worrying possibility. They are huge costs. The delays on the decision around the Galway city ring road project only add to the level of frustration and the missed opportunities for the city and the citizens of Galway.

I do not have to tell the Minister of State that Galway is geographically ideal from a light rail point of view. Squeezed as it is between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay it has developed into a long narrow strip from Doughiska to Barna. If we consider the possibilities of expansion in Ardaun and Garraun eastwards towards Oranmore and the expansion of Knocknacarra and Barna to the west, this layout is ideal for a light rail system that would create a public transport spine for the greater Galway area, accessible to the maximum number of people, and connectivity to the industrial centre east of the city and the residential suburbs to the west. There are two universities in the city and four hospitals, all of which would be immediately adjacent to an east-west Gluas line, giving easy access and reducing the need for parking spaces at all sites, which is a perennial problem.

Gluas, together with a fully reopened western rail corridor, would give us a sustainable public transport system that would future-proof the city and its environs for generations to come. Galway city's population is approaching 90,000 and its immediate environs push this to well past 100,000. The projections are that it will meet 140,000 over the next ten to 15 years. We need to look to the future of Galway city. There is an opportunity in the national development plan, which is forthcoming. I would like to see this project funded in terms of the next stage. The feasibility report has been published. The next stage will be the emerging preferred route design and the engagement and consultation that goes with this. That needs to be funded in the national development plan. As I said, this is not an either-or situation. I support this project but it does not mean I do not support the Galway city ring road, which of course I do, or the western rail corridor, the reopening of which I have been a long-time supporter of and advocate for.

I look forward to the Minister of State's response because I know he has an interest in rail due to his advocacy for the western rail corridor. I believe the Gluas project would be a great addition and would provide the connectivity to the existing rail line in the city.

I thank Senator Kyne for putting forward this very important topic. Being a Galway man, I understand the problems we have with traffic in Galway city, which affects the entire region to say the least. At the outset I must state that any proposals for Gluas or light rail for Galway are intrinsically linked to the development of the Galway metropolitan area transport strategy. We will call this GMATS from now on rather than reading it all out again. The National Transport Authority, NTA, has commenced the updating of the Galway transport strategy, which was adopted in 2016. The updated GMATS is being developed in conjunction with Galway city and county council. The GMATS will provide a long-term strategic plan framework for the delivery of transport and the integrated development of transport infrastructure and services in the Galway metropolitan area. It would align with all of the existing national, regional and local policy and guidance.

As part of this process, and in addition to the need for a strategic roads feasibility study, the NTA identified the requirement for a light rail feasibility study to better understand the general feasibility for light rail in the Galway metropolitan area, and to investigate potential indicative alignments. The final report of this study was published on 30 October 2024 for information and this will now form part of the analysis used to inform the development of the GMATS, alongside recommendations for active travel, bus services, rail, roads and demand management measures. The light rail feasibility study is not intended to specifically identify a preferred alignment of a light rail corridor in the city. Instead, the final report explores key issues and potential feasibility. The important thing is that this feasibility study has shown that there could, under the right conditions, be a case for developing a light rail system in Galway. The analysis, presented in the final report, identified an east-west corridor through the city, which would be likely to have the strongest potential for light rail. However, the route options in the study are preliminary, and indicative by design, and would need to be explored further in line with the appropriate transport scheme development and appraisal guidance, following any decision to further progress light rail for the city.

In addition to examining potential alignment options, the feasibility study explored the technical parameters of light rail in terms of the capacity of different types of vehicles, typical dimensions, and infrastructure requirements.

There are also emerging developments in the sector, including more innovative forms of very light rail, vLRT. These emerging technologies were also considered in the final report.

The findings from this study, along with a strategic roads feasibility study, will inform the development of GMATS, which will undergo full environmental assessment and public consultation. This comprehensive, multimodal approach aims to address Galway's transport needs holistically rather than through the narrow prism of one specific mode.

At this stage, it is not considered appropriate to attempt to forecast the future costs, due to uncertainties about when the project would be delivered and uncertainties about future construction price inflation.

As the Senator will be aware, in January 2023, the High Court remitted the application for approval of the N6 Galway city ring road to An Coimisiún Pleanála, formerly An Bord Pleanála, for further consideration. An Coimisiún Pleanála has asked Galway County Council to provide additional information in relation to the planning consent application for the ring road and this information was submitted on 15 April 2025.

The NTA considers it appropriate to await An Coimisiún Pleanála's determination on the resubmitted N6 Galway ring road application. The NTA will then review the timeline and publication date for the GMATS when this determination has been made. Implementation of any recommendations identified in the strategy will be subject to the availability of funding and Government approval. In the meantime, implementation will continue on the current Galway transport strategy. A significant amount of planning and design has already taken place, which will enable construction early in the coming years across active travel, bus and rail-related projects including, importantly, on Galway BusConnects, the ongoing redevelopment of Ceannt Station and the improvements planned for Oranmore station and track infrastructure. Also, the western rail corridor, as the Senator mentioned, between Athenry and Claremorris will be considered in the context of the implementation of the all-island rail review.

I thank the Minister of State for the comprehensive response. I note the comments of the NTA that it is appropriate to wait for An Coimisiún Pleanála's determination on the Galway city ring road. The concern is that it will be possibly late next year when a decision will be made. The Galway city ring road, if it has to go some sort of oral hearing, may take that long and then there may be court challenges. What determination is the NTA waiting for? Is it waiting for the final determination from the courts or are they waiting for the determination from An Coimisiún Pleanála only, because we will be losing time in that regard? What the Gluas group has asked for is to allow this to progress to the emerging preferred route status and to allow for funding in the national development plan or, indeed, if it was forthcoming, through the Department without going through the national development plan protocol.

This is a concept that, I am sure, the Minister of State would be supportive of. All of it is subject to Government approval and funding.

First, I would say it is to await the outcome of the An Coimisiún Pleanála decision, not to wait to see where it goes after that. Hopefully, it will not go anywhere other than to construction. We all know that the problem has been that the outer ring road, by its nature, is a big project but it is holding up other decisions to be made about the city. That is the biggest consideration we have at present and we need to move along with that.

I met with the Gluas group and was impressed with its professional approach to trying to put this project onto the ground in Galway. I will be working with the group on that. The NTA is saying it will not finish out the GMATS until An Coimisiún Pleanála makes its decision and then we will have the full picture. I am looking forward to that.

I have been engaging with my officials about Galway in general and about the specifics of this light rail. We will continue to work on it and see what we can achieve for it in the short term as well as the long term.

I thank the Minister of State for being here. I appreciate it very much. I know it is not only the day, but also the week, that is in it. I understand the pressure he is under.

This is a grave matter I wanted to raise with the Minister of State. I have been approached by a number of very senior therapists in the HSE West and North West region about something contrary to the Children First Act and the Criminal Justice (Withholding of Information on Offences against Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act. As part of and within the scope of their professional practice, they became aware of an individual who had disclosed watching images of child sexual abuse and to also having had sex with a minor, that is, he raped a child. This absolutely meets, and exceeds, the threshold for mandatory reporting as set down for all professionals involved in this area. However, a senior manager in the HSE West and North West region took it upon himself to indicate that nobody could make a mandatory disclosure to the authorities in relation to a risk to children except him. He abrogated this. He furthermore said that it was his view that what had been disclosed to this therapist and then discussed at the therapeutic multidisciplinary team meeting did not meet the threshold of mandatory reporting, which is completely and utterly incorrect. The people of Cavan, Roscommon, Donegal and Leitrim would be alarmed to know that a senior gatekeeper of information does not want disclosures of child sexual abuse and the rape of children to be disclosed, and that accelerates the risk to other children in that region. This is a very grave matter that requires immediate intervention.

There is another component to this. The therapists involved are extremely experienced. I have met them. They are people of absolute integrity and great empathy. They are the very best of us in terms of their public service. They were so concerned about this that they made a report to An Garda Síochána anyway, which is what they should have done and are mandated to do. They discharged their duties. They have since become the subject-----

The disclosure is identifiable.

Apologies. There is now a pattern of retaliation and reprisal visited upon that team and the most senior of the therapists has had his role severely curtailed. There is this kind of reprisal for people who stand up to do the right thing.

We are well aware of this pattern of reprisal and retaliation in the public service. That has a further danger because it sends a message to other professionals in the area that if they raise a concern, they are likely to be subject to hostile scrutiny. It really compounds what is already a toxic dynamic and makes it much worse. I hope that the Minister could intervene to make sure that person is restored immediately to their full duties and an assertion that the person could never promoted also needs to be clarified and withdrawn. This is one of the most qualified and experienced clinicians in their area. To be told they would never be promoted, having raised a concern around a risk of sexual abuse to children beggars belief. We wanted the Minister of State to make a statement on the matter and indicate what action can be taken.

I thank the Senator for raising this really important matter. I apologise for being late. I was in the Dáil. I arranged cover in the Dáil because I wanted to take this matter personally. I did not want to pass it to someone else. The Senator will appreciate that none of the Government, my Department, the HSE or I can comment on the individual case. However, the HSE does, as a matter of routine, investigate any allegations of the nature made in this case and notifies all appropriate agencies and individuals. I want to take the opportunity to set out my absolute intolerance of any inaction on safeguarding and reporting of safeguarding. Safeguarding is everyone's business. I have said that for so many years in relation to mental health, dementia, and older people. No one cannot turn their back on safeguarding. As professionals, I expect everyone working in our health and social care services to not only fulfil their legal obligations, but to act urgently out of concern for the welfare of any child or vulnerable person who may be at risk.

I understand that HSE West and North West is progressing an independent external review under the HSE Incident Management Framework 2020 relating to a counselling service in the north west. This review was initiated following concerns raised in relation to children first mandatory reporting, as the Senator said. The HSE advises that it is engaging with staff directly in this process in line with the incident management framework. I have been advised that while the HSE has been actively working on this issue from the outset, the formal review process took longer than anticipated to commence owing to its complexity. I am not happy with that, the fact that it took longer than anticipated to commence. The issues raised are too serious. Once this review is completed, the HSE will take any required actions to ensure that the findings and recommendations are implemented in full.

Under the Children First Act 2015, there are specific legal obligations for certain staff known as mandated persons to report certain information relating to harm of a child to Tusla, known as mandatory reporting. The Children First Act is supported by the Children First National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children 2017, and the HSE child protection and welfare policy, which sets out the roles, responsibilities and procedures assigned to ensure the effective management of child protection and welfare concerns in the HSE. The HSE is very clear on the obligations of mandated persons. All staff are regularly made aware of the policy and the obligations on mandated staff to report their concerns to Tusla and-or An Garda Síochána.

One aspect of the existing HSE child protection and welfare policy indicates that staff should inform their line manager when a concern arises. The purpose of this is for communication; consultation when a staff member is unsure of their concern, and for the line manager to ensure that the child protection and welfare reporting procedure is followed correctly. The HSE have advised my Department that it is not intended to be a screening of a concern or a barrier to reporting. This is the real nub of it. The HSE policy clearly states that when there is disagreement about the threshold of concern "either party can seek further consultation with Tusla. If you remain concerned, you should report this concern to Tusla and/or An Garda Síochána.".. The policy also states that a mandated person "cannot delegate their own responsibility to report".

The HSE has advised my Department that after the relevant therapists wrote to the CEO of the HSE in October 2024 on this matter, the CEO wrote to the health region stating - this is really important - that there should be no line management screening of mandated reporting by individual professionals and suggested that the therapists be advised immediately that they are free to contact Tusla directly. The relevant staff were advised of this. I will come back in my next response to the Senator.

I thank the Minister of State. I am very reassured to hear that the CEO of the HSE, Mr. Gloster, shares the concerns of these three therapists. To look at this in the round, they were so concerned that they reached out to a public representative looking for help. My background is in researching systemic and systematic sexual violence in the Defence Forces. When reprisal is visited on the person who discloses such sexual abuse, the problem persists. That is why we have had 25 years of ongoing abuse of women in the Defence Forces, notwithstanding the original disclosures that were made. The harm is not reduced. That is my concern here. The Minister of State is alarmed at the manner in which this matter has been handled. It has not been dealt with properly. The most important thing here is the welfare of children. The ongoing reprisal against the senior therapist has to stop now because it will deter other people of integrity from coming forward if they fear reprisal and retaliation within the west and north west region.

As a Minister of State in the Department of Health, I take safeguarding incredibly seriously. I have to be frank. For too long we have had a culture of silence in relation to child abuse, with cover-ups facilitated by institutions and those in positions of power and authority. I do not say that lightly. We also know of the harm caused to people who have been victimised and abused in the care of the State and services funded by the State. This is not new and unfortunately it is not something we can say is fully behind us in the past either. Culture change takes time. From the very introduction of Children First, we set out a very clear message for everyone. If in doubt, report it. Do not expect somebody else will. Furthermore, we placed a legal obligation on people in certain positions working with children and vulnerable adults and in other positions of authority to report any concerns they may have to Tusla or An Garda Síochána. It is the responsibility of all Departments to ensure that all staff in their Departments and the relevant sectors and agencies under their remit of and funded by them are aware of and comply with the obligations under Children First guidance and relevant legislation to ensure that children and young people are kept safe while accessing services provided or funded by every Department. I am happy to talk to the Senator offline after this.