The President has signed a new bill that will seal important records on Mother and Baby homes for 30 years.
Some files pertaining to the commission investigating the homes will be sealed for that length of time under legislation from 2004.
The controversial bill, passed last week in the Dáil, allows for 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.
He says he's listened carefully to the debate and and the issues raised over the rights of access to information.
President Michael D. Higgins, having given careful consideration to all constitutional and other aspects of the ‘Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related Matters) Records, and another Matter, Bill 2020’, and having considered all the options available to him, today signed the Bill, one of four Bills submitted to the President late last week.
The President has followed the passage of this Bill through both Houses of the Oireachtas, and has listened carefully to the debate and the issues raised as to the rights of access to information submitted to a Commission.
While noting that important concerns were raised in the discussion on this Bill which are serious and must be addressed, the Bill itself did not directly raise a constitutional issue suitable for an Art 26.1.1 referral.
When considering any piece of legislation, the President must also be cognisant of Art. 34.3 of Bunreacht na hEireann, which provides that no Court can question the validity of any legislation following a referral by the President to the Supreme Court. The President’s decision to sign this legislation leaves it open to any citizen to challenge the provisions of the Bill in the future.
