IRELAND
Irish Examiner
Tuesday, February 02, 2016
Joe Leogue
The commission of investigation into mother and baby homes has cost the State €1.78m to date, Children’s Minister James Reilly has revealed.
The commission, which is due to publish its findings in February 2018, was set up last year to determine whether women and children in mother and baby homes were subject to forced separation or mistreated, and if these abuses were subsequently covered up.
The three-person commission is comprised of chairwoman Judge Yvonne Murphy and commissioners William Duncan, an international legal expert on child protection and adoption, and Prof Mary E Daly, a historian.
Mr Reilly revealed the costs in his reply to a parliamentary question from Renua leader Lucinda Creighton.
He said the €1.78m spent to date includes set-up costs and costs incurred by his department in supporting the commission.
The commission’s terms of reference have been criticised by survivors groups for being too narrow.
In December the Coalition of Mother and Baby Home Survivors delivered a letter to the offices of the commission of investigation to demand that the terms of reference be widened.
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