We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
LAST UPDATE | 23 Oct 2020
THE DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN has released a statement responding to concerns raised by the Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) about the application of a right to personal data within a 2004 Act on the Commission into Mother and Baby Homes.
In a statement released tonight, the Department said: “The legal advice received by the Department is that the GDPR right to access personal data (Article 15) is expressly prohibited by section 39 of the Commissions of Investigations Act 2004.”
Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman said that the Attorney General and the DPC have “maintained ongoing communications” about both the 2004 Act, and the Government’s Mother and Baby Homes Bill.
O’Gorman and the AG have asserted that the Government is legally obliged to seal the database complied by the Commission for 30 years under the 2004 Act, which would mean that survivors and families would not have access to their own data for 30 years.
But the Irish Examiner revealed tonight that the Data Protection Commissioner disagrees with the view put forward by the Department regarding the 2004 Act how GDPR applies to it.
It said that the GDPR law introduced in 2018 “explicitly amended” the 2004 Commissions of Investigation Act so that “any restriction on the right to access personal data processed by the Commission can only be implemented ‘to the extent necessary and proportionate to safeguard the effective operation of commissions and the future cooperation of witnesses’”.
The DPC’s intervention came as O’Gorman was addressing the Seanad earlier.
He said he would engage further with the Attorney General on the matter.
Senators quizzed him on the revelation, before passing the Government’s Mother and Baby Homes Bill, by 22 votes to 16.
Regrets anxiety
Earlier, O’Gorman said he deeply regrets causing anxiety among mother and baby home survivors.
Last night the Dáil passed a controversial bill, by 78 votes to 67, that allows the transfer of a database of 60,000 records created by Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes to Tusla, the Child and Family Agency.
Many survivors and legal experts have expressed anger at the Bill.
Opposition TDs said the legislation was being pushed through without proper scrutiny, and none of their amendments were accepted during an emotional debate yesterday.
O’Gorman has defended the legislation but said he regrets poorly communicating what it intends to do.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland today, O’Gorman: “I needed to do a better job of communicating what the government is doing, and engaging with survivors’ groups.
“And I know a lot of anxiety has been caused, I certainly deeply regret … that my failure to communicate properly caused that anxiety.”
O’Gorman said people have conflated the legislation with the 2004 Act under which the commission operated. He said the latter requires that the records be sealed for 30 years.
GDPR
When asked about GDPR superseding this legislation, O’Gorman said that when the regulations were introduced in Ireland in 2018, the 2004 Act “was amended to explicitly exclude GDPR from applying to the commission’s archives”.
This assertion has been disputed by legal experts, with Dr Maeve O’Rourke of the Clann Project stating: “Neither the Commission nor the Government is permitted under the GDPR to place a blanket seal over the entire archive it holds”.
O’Gorman acknowledged that some experts have disagree with the Attorney General’s interpretation of the law.
“There are some very eminent experts in this area, who disagree with the interpretation given by the Attorney General, so I have said that as well as looking at 30-year rule, we need to look at the application of GDPR against personal information that’s contained in the archives.”
O’Gorman is not legally bound by the advice of the AG, experts have pointed out.
“I’m absolutely aware, particularly for personal information, the 30-year sealing, coming from the original law is really problematic,” O’Gorman said.
“I’m committed to engaging with the Attorney General to see what avenues there are there to address the 30-year issue, particularly with regard to personal information.”
Jennifer Whitmore, the Social Demcrats’ spokesperson on children, told TheJournal.ie communication is not the issue.
“It is not an issue of bad communication. The issue is bad legislation. There was no proper consultation with survivors, and this has ended up curbing their rights to access information.
“This whole ordeal has caused so much needless anxiety to survivors when the State should have used this opportunity to reassert their rights to access their personal information.”
Whitmore said there was “a genuine effort by all members of the opposition” to provide solutions that would prevent the records being sealed for three decades.
“It is hard to believe that in this day and age we continue to make the same mistakes, continue to try to silence those that the State has treated so badly and continue to brush our past under the carpet,” she added.
Tracing
O’Gorman said the commission’s database, once transferred to Tusla, will help people “establish their identity”. However, survivors have expressed concerns they will be unable to access the database.
The minister acknowledged that current tracing legislation is inadequate and has committed to bringing in new information and tracing legislation next year.
The commission’s report, due to be sent to O’Gorman next week, is 4,000 pages long.
The minister said the report will need to be reviewed by both his department and the Attorney General before being published.
He said he could not give a definitive timeline for making it available but he wants this to happen “as quickly as possible”, saying: “Survivors have waited long enough.”
The Clann Project, comprising the Justice for Magdalenes Research group and the Adoption Rights Alliance, said in a previous statement that the sealing of the archive “means no-one will be able to access their personal records [or information] about their disappeared relatives or babies who are buried in unmarked graves”.
“All of the administrative files, which show how the abusive system of forced family separation was run, will also be withheld.
“It will not be possible to question the conclusions of the Commission of Investigation, to do further research, or to hold wrongdoers to account.”
Updated by Gráinne Ní Aodha
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Let’s not gloss over the matter at hand here. The Minister has the ability to release the Commission report if he wants to. But will he? And if he doesn’t why not and what are they covering up?
@David Wool: Exactly, they are all full of regret this morning, crying crocodile tears, but its nothing but another clergy driven coverup.
@David Wool:
Covering up a massive financial payout due to state culpibility probably
@Lotus: The State is controlled by long standing and established Civil Servants in the Civil Service. That has always been the case.
Elected Politicians are changed out periodically to give the public the illusion of choice and fool you into thinking your precious vote makes a difference.
Here is your proof.
You never see a civil servant in the media to deliver the message or answer for anything.
@Lotus: This even goes so far as departmental reports not being signed by its author..zero responsibility..that’s policy.
@David Wool: And all that Money paid to; Advisers.
@Pat Casey: OPUS DEI.
I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if I would be associated with a Yes-Vote…
@Vanessa: unfortunately everything is acceptable now except objection
@Vanessa: It’s what the “parties” want. Even if you don’t agree with the vote you still have to vote Yes if the party want it. It’s a complete and total shambles.
@David Corrigan: that’s more like a dictatorship than a democracy
@Vanessa: You are correct Vanessa, but this government will have no problem sleeping. It is their arrogance that is causing the people of this country anxiety because of their reckless communication. They demand people do what they say regardless of the consequences. Then they change their minds again & again & again.
Deeply regrets it but doesn’t choose to do anything about it
@Ned Gerblansky:
They are truly despicable, this will destroy them (and rightly so).
@Ned Gerblansky: deeply regrets and profoundly sorry where did we hear that before
@Ned Gerblansky: Well said. Apologies are coming fast and loose these days. One would think these guys did not hace a phalanx of highly experienced civil servants, special advisers, media advisers, PR consultants, and the rest to protect them from bad decisions. Oh, they do! In the interests of our country can someone please leak that he was told what to do and ignored the advice?
I’m disgusted how much the greens have sold out for everything they believe in.
How did people who were formerly known as principled like Neasa Hourigan or Catherine Martin sleep last night? They’ve become everything they once stood against in politics.
@Rochelle: They never believe in it in the first place, just wanted your votes. Great marketing.
@Rochelle: Do you not remember the last time they where in government or gave you just come and lived in Ireland
@Shaun Gallagher: gave=have
@Rochelle: The Green agenda is a con in Ireland to get into power and be paid for talking. Ireland produces 0.1% of the worlds greenhouse gases. We don’t matter but that won’t sway people who want the cuddley thought of thinking that we do.
@Rochelle: All they do is sneak into power and raise taxes. Muppets who vote them can’t can own this one
Thousands of babies bodies dumped in secret. Countless thousands more mothers and children lives destroyed by never being allowed to find each other. I for one will NEVER forget this despicable act. FF/FG/Greens. You truly sicken me
@frank_1916: Ah we are quite good here in Ireland at forgetting about the past. Sure look where the FF/Greens are back to today.
@Shaun Gallagher: your forgetting FG.
@frank_1916: well said, why would people vote these puppets in? There needs to be a change of the senior civil servants in political departments and new policies developed for the better of all citizens, how this can be done is by a vote for serious change in the landscape of how policies are implemented at the top level of politics. #timeforchange
O’Gorman and all who voted for this bill should be charged with aiding crimes against humanity. Transperity? The voted to protect the crimes of church and State.
With all the many issues and real problems needing new legislation to be brought in, in this country.. Why was this one so important and not even one amendment was allowed to be heard on it also. What is the rationale for this? As the ministers ‘regret’ does not cover this answer and in lieu of such an answer the only rationale can be that it is another huge cover up
@Nigel o’Neill:
It’s blatently obvious what is going on.
They want the survivors to be dead & gone so they don’t have to pay out any compensation.
This says it all about ireland.
You don’t regret anything O’Gormless.
You are a truly disappointing and utterly disgraceful representative of everything that is truly rotten to the core in Irish politics.
I have no doubt this action will send the * so called greens* to the political bin along with their string pullers.
I look forward to seeing you begging at the doorstep again.
@Michael Clinton: well said Michael!!
I hope all the usual fanboys and girls on here are proud of your great government.
This requires the one of the biggest protest marches the country has ever seen to expose what ff and fg are covering up..lets organise it folks
The government just rubber stamped hiding the abuse and allowing the abuse to continue, until we address the horrific past and shine a bright light on the cruelty, injustice and horror of mother and baby homes run in cahoots between church and state then we make these victims suffer on indefinitely and deny them their human rights but apparently, all those who voted in favour of this legislation don’t have a problem with leaving victims in limbo.
@Honeybee: 800 Victims, in a; Cesspit in Tuam
Disgraceful, conduct by the government and 2 rural alliance TD’s.
@Ciaran Burke: It was 2 regional TD’s, not rural. Michael Lowry was one of them, not sure on the other.
All the rural TD’s voted against it. You know you’ve screwed up when even Mattie and the Healy Rae’s can see it.
Are the people just going to sit back and accept this, astonishing..
Why do we have a government from the 1980s? It’s exactly the same culture of secrecy and cover up. This was a disgraceful outcome for the the survivors.
This country has terrible track record when it comes to kids. Some cover up there
They can sleep at night because they are now on the train, Bisto that is.
Talk is cheap, actions speak louder than words.
Check Rodney O’Gorman’s House of the Oireachtas, you will find the TDs who voted for this appalling legislation.
Protest over having to wear masks, cover up one of the darkest things to ever happen in our country and there’s nothing!? Shows where we are really!!
@Bart O Brien: Alot of the protestors against the mandatory wearing of masks are the same people who protested against Roderic o Gorman becoming minister for children in the first place, yet they were shut down and called conspiracy theorists and far right activists. There should be massive protest against this.
How that shower are even in Government is mind boggling! How quick people forget. Abysmal
Disgraceful . Politicians have learnt nothing . We do not want any more Cover ups . Once again families and survivors of this abuse have been failed
What’s going on is we really have some very incompetent people in very important positions who just aren’t up to thier jobs. This current bunch are every bit as bad as the previous bunch.
Shame Shame on FG FF GR for sealing #motherandbabyhomes documents without listening to the survivors, you have #buriedthemalive ,who or what are you hiding?
O’Gorman couldn’t give a flying procreation.
Surely someone with such an issue communicating is a terrible choice for a minister. Let’s not pretend this is the first time his poor communication skills caused upset. He is absolutely hopeless as minister for Disability too.
Sorry , not sorry
So as not to be falsely accused of taking quotes out of context, I believe it fair to refer to quotes from then F.G Taoiseach Enda Kenny, F.F Leader / Taoiseach Micheal Martin and last but not least F.G Leader/ Taoiseach Mr. Leo Varadkar as the sentiment and spirit of these quotes if sincere ( to which I believe the evidence clearly suggests they are but more False Insincere Political Speal, also known as FIPS, often confused with the term FIBS) contemptuously aimed at the ordinary decent Irish Citizens, of which the political elites believe are below the rights to honesty, accountability and justice.
Consider the following quote from a then F.G Taoiseach Enda Kenny, whom subsequent to attaining his position of Taoiseach gave a much heralded indication of a new way of government, it reads as follows.
‘’In keeping with our desire to bring Openness, Accountability and Transparency to Politics and Government, we have already started work on restoring the powers of the freedom of information act and to extend its scope to other public bodies. It is our intention to bring forward Whistle-blowers legislation to protect individuals who disclose, in good faith, identified misbehaviour.’’
Well the 30 year Secrecy Act has most certainly scuppered the rights of those women who showing great courage, had to re-live the trauma of the crimes perpetrated against them and those who had children and indeed the children themselves both living and dead.
Relatively recently Mr. Martin publically stated relating to another matter of public interest, ‘an approach which is intolerant of debate and treats the public as if it cannot be trusted with hard facts’.
Well Mr. Slim what’s the reason for this 30 year secrecy act, who and what are you intent of protecting or should I say PERVERSING’?
Last but by no means least we have F.G Fearless Fuhrer / Taoiseach Mr Leo Varadkar.
Mr. Varadkar has made public pronouncements of ‘Renewal and Reform of Irish Politics’…. And then has the brass neck to claim that ‘..Things have Changed for the Better in Our New Politics’’….Mr. Varadkar has further bragged that ‘ The Oireachtas has also passed legislation to ensure Greater Openness and Transparency’.. if the matters were not so serious I suppose we should be braking our hearts laughing at your bare face hypocrisy, buy your 30 year secrecy act has blown that false allegation, out of the water.
Mr. Varadkar has also spoken of ‘values of self-awareness, compassion, integrity, respect, dignity, kindness, courage, generosity, affection, authenticity, hope’.
The fact remains that while the above values may have been eloquently spoken by Mr Varadkar, said Values were Most Certainly were Not Afforded to the Surviving and dead Women and Children Incarcerated in these Intentionally, Deceptively, Benignly Termed Mother and Baby Homes.
State Institutions where, Physical, Emotional Torture and Criminal Acts, of illegally trafficking / selling children, illegal drug testing on children for monetary gain, sexual abuse of women who were further abused by been committed to so called Mental Homes as a Criminal Cover Up, because they spoke out, the list goes on.
Medical Professionals, Government Officials/Government Agencies, clearly had interaction with these Institutions, all the way down the line to those involved in signing off death certificates.
The 30 year Secrecy act will ensure that anyone living who perpetrated crimes and any living professionals / government officials who interacted with these Institutions will Not be Held Accountable.
For the present living women and children who were victims of crime within these institutions, the chances are that they will not be alive in 30 years- time and therefore will not see justice nor recompense.
All the TDs who voted in favour of this 30 year Secrecy Act in my humble view are guilty of Perverting the Course of Justice. The can keep their bullshit about Democracy, Openness, Transparency, Accountability, the have publically Aided and Abetted Criminality all under the Window Dressing of so called Democracy.
Is nobody listening to what he is actually saying?
There was a risk of this database being deleted because of privacy rules.
@John Mulligan: Nonsense.
@John Mulligan:
Dead right John.
And the best way to save the record was to seal it for 30 years.
@John Mulligan: Lets note that Holly Cairns asked Roderic if he would consider any amendments and he replied “No”.
No debate, no discussion and no consideration for alternatives. Does that sound like someone who was trying to find the best possible outcome?
@John Mulligan: No doubt you have seen the article on here by Fionn Davenport, maybe you can explain it all to him.
@John Mulligan: stop covering for him that is crap there could have been amendment to to it according to all legal experts or are you trying to tell us he knows better then them, why the rush to seal it, we’ve had other investigations left lying on ministers desks gathering dust for years, are they hoping by the time they are opened some of the perpetrators who are still alive now will be dead by then
@Duncan Paul: he has committed to bringing in legislation in 2021 to give people access to their records.
The fact remains, and I’m no fan of his, that there was a risk to this database under privacy laws.
I have no doubt that some elements in government would love to see it deleted. Clearly, some in opposition definitely want that.
These must be a nightmare for victims. People in power abusing and hidding them all over again with the same poor excuse of being for their own good, and the public allowing this to happen again.
BLM protests were organized in Ireland for institutionalized abuse 5000 kms away. What are Irish people waiting to stand for their own twice abused children and women?!!
This guy is totally against the Irish family unit he is a
@Mark Behan: He looks a; Dope, is a; Dope.
THAT FAMOUS WORD AGAIN….SORRY
A pathetic excuse for covering up the bike crimes of the #FFG Carnival Of Reaction so presciently predicted by James Connolly. I gave a preference to the Greens. Never again.
Regrets are no good to the people.
Welease Woderwicks we wecords.
@Ciaran De Bhal:
His arrogance in the chamber yesterday when he said ‘no’ to hearing amendment challenges! We don’t fall for these mealy mouthed regrets & apologies
HE SHOULD BE ASHAMED OFF HIMSELF. ABSOLUTELY DISGRACE
get rid of those “Beep” pretending to be in charge. It gets worse by the day, wannabee dictatorship running the country with complete incompetent brownnosers
have your say