Redress board deadline on September 16th

SEPTEMBER 16th is the last day on which applications can be made to the Residential Institutions Redress Board, which offers compensation to abused former residents of 139 industrial and reformatory schools, orphanages and children’s homes linked to the State.

The board is being wound down under legislation introduced in the Dáil yesterday by the Minister of State for Education.

Ciarán Cannon confirmed that since its establishment in 2002, the board had received 15,173 applications and had finalised 14,645 cases, of which 925 were either refused, withdrawn or resulted in no award.

Awards averaged €63,000, with 36 per cent of cases resulting in payments of up to €50,000. Forty-nine per cent received compensation of between €50,000 and €100,000, 13 per cent were awarded between €100,000 and €150,000 and 2 per cent of cases resulted in payments of between €150,000 and €300,000. Thirteen applicants refused awards.

The overall cost of the scheme was estimated at €1.1 billion but is now expected to reach €1.3 billion. Expenditure to the end of 2010 had reached €1.05 billion, including €836 million in awards and €158 million in associated medical and legal costs.

Introducing the Residential Institutions Redress (Amendment) Bill, Mr Cannon said the Cloyne diocese report “reminds us once again of the horrors of child abuse and has highlighted the need for all involved to accept their role and responsibility”.

This was the context for the Government’s call to religious congregations to pay on an equal basis with the taxpayer the costs “of the response to residential institutional abuse”, but the congregations were “significantly short” of the €680 million donation required.

The Minister said the failure of the State “to protect its vulnerable children is an indictment on us all and behoves us to ensure it is never repeated”.

Outlining the reason for winding down the board, Mr Cannon said it was introduced as an “exceptional measure” to provide compensation for people who had been abused in State-linked institutions. From the outset, the board was “never intended to be a panacea for every injustice committed on children” but to deal with a “very particular circumstance”.

Of the awards made, 78 per cent were as settlements and 19 per cent followed hearings. Three per cent were made under the appeals mechanism.

Since the original 2005 deadline was extended, a further 1,540 applications for compensation were made, of which 725 were allowed, while further information is being awaited in 494 cases. Of the remainder, 220 were disallowed, withdrawn or had the file closed, while 36 were not valid. Sixty-five remain to be considered.

Mr Cannon said the Government was satisfied that the board had provided former residents with a mechanism through which they could obtain “fair and reasonable” compensation. It had accepted applications for 8½ years, a “more than adequate” period.

The legislation would remove the power of the board to accept further applications “made on or after September 17th, 2011”.