Department of Health Sec Gen must attend the Health Committee for questioning
People Before Profit are calling on the current and former Health Minister’s at cabinet to make themselves available for questioning on Department of Health dossiers on children with autism.
People Before Profit will be demanding answers on key questions such as: 1) Over what period were these dossiers gathered 2) Who authorised the collation of the dossiers 3) Were other government departments involved.
People Before Profit will be insisting that the families on whom files were kept be informed immediately.
Richard Boyd Barrett TD said: “We are calling on all current and former Health Ministers at cabinet to outline what they knew about this scandal and, crucially we need to know what other government departments knew or gathered these documents and information.
“This issue is of the upmost urgency and importance. It is frankly scandalous that the Department of Health and other government departments would treat some of the most vulnerable people in our society in this way and they should make time this week to answer some very serious questions on this. We need urgent accountability from government at all former Health Minister’s at cabinet need to outline what they knew of this practice.”
People Before Profit’s spokesperson on the Health Committee, Gino Kenny TD, called on the Secretary General of the Department of Health to attend the committee this week to present his knowledge of the dossiers.
He said: “It is imperative that the Health Committee hear from the current Sec Gen of the department this week. We cannot allow more time to elapse where we do not have answers to some very important questions, such as, who knew about this in government and in government departments, and who sanctioned this practice?”