Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2026-01-27
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Paul Nicholas Gogarty (IND), Dublin Mid-West

We have seen too many tragic cases across the country where a parent or family member has taken the lives of their loved ones, including one in my constituency weeks ago. My thoughts are first and foremost with every family who has suffered such unimaginable loss and also, of course, the family of the late Grace Lynch.
How the State handles these cases is a matter of public interest. There is one case in particular, again in my constituency, that demands answers. This week five years ago, three innocent children - Conor, aged 9, Darragh, aged 7, and Carla, just three years old - were killed by their mother, Deirdre Morley. She was later found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity, a verdict that has left more questions than answers. Their father, Andrew McGinley, who is in the Gallery today, has fought tirelessly to have the full circumstances leading up to their deaths properly investigated. He sought detailed fact-finding processes at their inquest, including the examination of the treatment Ms Morley received in the two years before the children died. However, the coroner has limited the scope of the inquest. This followed correspondence with the HSE and from consultants in St. Patrick's Mental Health Services requesting such a limitation.
I fully respect the independence of the Coroner’s Court but when the HSE asks for a limited scope, that request carries weight, and if the effect is to restrict the facts that can be examined, then the public is entitled to ask why. Barristers for the HSE argued that a full investigation would examine not only the treatment provided but also a "consideration and determination as to its adequacy". Yes, the Coroners Act does prevent a finding of civil or criminal liability but the legislation does not prevent the coroner from establishing plain facts, including whether protocols were followed, whether procedures failed or whether systemic gaps existed. Those factual findings are essential if we are serious about preventing more such tragedies.
Under the European Convention on Human Rights, the State has a duty to conduct an effective investigation where systemic failures may have contributed to a death. That requires looking beyond the immediate medical causes to the wider circumstances. Our Supreme Court has also been clear that coroners have a public duty to allay rumours or suspicion and to highlight circumstances which, if unaddressed, could lead to further deaths.
I am, therefore, asking for a clear commitment today in the case of the McGinley children. Further information must be brought into the public domain that may require widening the remit of coroners or require the Attorney General to reconfirm that such scope in the public interest already exists. It certainly requires an examination as to why the HSE sought to limit this inquest and whether that constitutes undue interference contrary to the public interest. Families who lose loved ones in these horrific circumstances must be able to trust that every single relevant fact will be examined because transparency and accountability are about learning lessons and maybe, just maybe, that will save lives in the future.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-27/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:01+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-27