The news that just one church body has made a serious cash offer towards the €800 million redress scheme for survivors of mother and baby homes has been branded a “slap in the face for survivors”.
Following two years of talks with seven Catholic bodies and the Church of Ireland, government negotiator, Sheila Nunan, has submitted her final report to Minister for Equality Norma Foley.
This report has revealed that only one out of seven Catholic Church bodies have made a serious cash offer towards the redress scheme for survivors, while the Church of Ireland has refused to contribute.
Initial government negotiations with religious orders began back in 2021, but fell flat, leading to the appointment of Ms Nunan in May 2023.
She was tasked with securing a best and final offer from religious orders within six months.
But almost two years later and only one church body has made a serious cash offer.
Social Democrats spokesperson on children and equality and Kildare TD, Aidan Farrelly, said the religious orders must be "compelled” by the government to financially contribute to the redress scheme.
“It is astonishing to learn today that not one cent has been handed over by the religious orders complicit in the inhumane treatment and systematic abuse of innocent women and children in these institutions over the course of many decades,” said Deputy Farrelly.
“This is a further slap in the face for the tens of thousands of women and children who were incarcerated in mother and baby homes.
“On top of the suffering they endured, in recent years they have had to contend with a seriously flawed Commission of Investigation report and an inadequate redress scheme that excluded 24,000 survivors, including those who spent less than six months in a mother and baby home as a child.
“Clearly, the State’s softly-softly approach has not worked and, as always, the religious orders will need to be dragged kicking and screaming to the negotiating table."
Deputy Farrelly said that given their track record with previous redress schemes, it is clear that these religious orders "would much prefer to pay their armies of lawyers than the women and children they tortured and abused".
“We have had report after report documenting the crimes of the Church – not just in mother and baby homes, but in religious-run schools.
“When is the State finally going to flex some legal muscle when it comes to these religious orders?
“Why are these orders not being raided by Gardaí and why are their assets not being seized?,” he questioned.
Deputy Farrelly added that he believes the government are not willing to get tough with religious orders and they must go after them with “more than just a begging bowl”.
“The Taoiseach gave a disappointing response when questioned on this issue in the Dáil today by my party colleague Cian O’Callaghan. His commitment to merely review Sheila Nunan’s report does not inspire confidence that the government has any intention of getting tough on religious orders.
“Instead of being held accountable for its abuse of women and children, the Church has been running rings around successive governments for years. What will it take for the State to finally act and go after these orders with more than a begging bowl?”