A report by negotiator Sheila Nunan, who was tasked with leading a process of negotiation with religious bodies with historical involvement in Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions, was published earlier this afternoon.
Ms Nunan engaged with eight religious bodies involved in the institutions over 20 months.
Two out of eight religious bodies have offered a financial contribution towards the cost of the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme.
The Sisters of Bon Secours offered a cash contribution of €12.97 million, while the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul offered to contribute a building.
The Church of Ireland
A spokesperson for the Church of Ireland said it had co-operated fully with the Government's negotiator, Ms Nunan, and had provided explanations regarding its position which are included in the report.
"The Church of Ireland did not found, manage or own any of the homes mentioned in the report."
The Church of Ireland was brought into the negotiations in respect of the Bethany Home, Miss Carr's Flatlets and Denny House.
Ms Nunan's report notes that during the initial stages of negotiations with the former Minister Roderic O'Gorman, the Church of Ireland stated that the individuals serving on committees associated with these homes were not appointed by the Church of Ireland and "a lot of the work" relating to these homes was undertaken by women, who did not have positions within Church governance structures.
In July last year, Ms Nunan wrote to the Church of Ireland to say that she had devised a methodology to support the negotiation process and to establish an amount against which she might properly and fairly assess any voluntary contributions, on an informed basis.
In November of that year, the Church of Ireland sought clarification on the methodology and the figures.
It emphasised the difference between acting as a private individual who is a member of the Church of Ireland as opposed to conducting work representing the organisation.
It stated that children were baptised in their own religious traditions in Bethany Home.
It questioned the appropriateness of the Church of Ireland contributing to the Payment Scheme where they "could see no legal responsibility" on its part in relation to "these matters".
Sisters of Mercy
The Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy declined to engage with EY stating that they would not be contributing to the payment scheme and therefore saw no basis for EY to carry out a financial assessment in respect of the congregation.
A spokesperson for the Mercy Sisters responded to RTÉ News by highlighting a letter from the Sisters contained in the report appendices as reasons why the congregation would not be contributing to the cost of the scheme.
The author of the letter, Sr Marie Louise White said the ongoing engagement in seeking a contribution to the cost of the payment scheme from the congregation was based on "the continued misunderstanding" that the Sisters of Mercy had an ownership and control involvement in Mother and Baby Homes.
She said this was not the case and that she had previously advised the Minister and other parties about this.
Sr White stated that the County Homes were public bodies, which were never owned, operated or governed by the Sisters of Mercy.
"Our Sisters' only involvement was through staffing provision. In this capacity, they worked hard in trying to provide care and comfort to people in these institutions against the background of harsh public policy and the determination of local authorities to minimise cost to ratepayers."
She said no wrongdoing or failure was identified in the report of the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation on the part of any Sister of Mercy in connection with their employment or volunteering in County Homes.
"The Sisters of Mercy never were and should not now be misrepresented as having legal responsibility for County Homes and had no involvement with the distinct Mother and Baby Homes," according to the letter.
"There is thus neither legal, moral nor ethical justification for the State's request that the Sisters of Mercy make a financial contribution to the scheme," she said.
The Good Shepherd Sisters, the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, and The Legion of Mary have also been contacted.