ISPCC CALLS ON SEANAD TO ADDRESS SHORTCOMINGS IN CHILDREN’S FIRST LEGISLATION
The ISPCC says there are a number of shortcomings in the proposed Children First legislation, which is being debated in the Seanad today.
It covers a range of areas that would raise awareness of child abuse and provide for mandatory reporting by professionals.
The ISPCC is welcoming the legislation, overall.
However chief executive Grainia Long says there are gaps that could pose problems in the future.
“So this is not about the principles of the legislation, this is now turning to the future and saying ‘is this going to work in practice’ – and right now we are concerned that actually what it doesn’t do is be clear who’s in charge of compliance, how is that compliance going to be monitored and overseen, and what happens to those organisations or individuals who don’t do what the bill requires them to do” she said.
“That’s really important if we think about what’s happened in the past” she added.
