Ombudsman welcomes government acceptance of Magdalene recommendations
The State Ombudsman has welcomed proposals by the government to accept his recommendations on the Redress Scheme for Magdalene survivors.
The government is set to implement recommendations by the State Ombudsman to extend its Magdalene Laundry Redress Scheme to include more women.
Last November, the Ombudsman Peter Tyndall found that the 2013 Redress Scheme had been wrongly administered as some Magdalene survivor applicants were denied compensation.
Mr Tyndall investigated 27 specific cases, but many of those applications for redress were denied by the Department of Justice.
The Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan said yesterday that he had briefed the Cabinet on proposals to implement the recommendations made by Mr Tyndall in his investigation.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland today, Mr Tyndall said it had been "a mistake" that the women were not included in the Redress Scheme from the outset.
"We felt the narrowing interpretation of the scheme was wrong. These woman should have been admitted," he said.
They had never been compensated for that work. They lived on the grounds of the same convent, ate the same food, under the same nuns.
Mr Flanagan announced yesterday that Mary O'Toole, a senior independent barrister, would be appointed to review dispute over how long women stayed in the Magdalene institutions and to advise applicants who may lack the mental capacity to accept an award.
