The man who was in the fourth week of a hunger strike outside Leinster House in protest at the treatment of his case by the Residential Institutions Redress Board has been taken to Tallaght Hospital after he agreed to come off the strike this afternoon.
Mr Tom Sweeney from Tallaght in Dublin, a victim of abuse in two State institutions in the 1950s and 1960s, met with his lawyers this afternoon to discuss a number of proposals to resolve his case.
Mr Sweeney's initial award from the redress board was reduced by €40,000 to €74,000 after he asked for a full hearing of his case, as was his right. The awards made are based on a system of 'points', with points allocated for different aspects of the abuse and how it affected victims' lives.
Mr Sweeney was taken into Leinster House in a wheelchair this afternoon by the Dublin South West Fianna Fáil TD, Mr Charlie O'Connor, for talks. The proposals put to him, which have not yet been made public, emerged from a meeting between the four Dublin South West TDs, including Mr O'Connor, Mr Pat Rabbitte, Mr Seán Crowe and Mr Conor Lenihan and the Minister for Education yesterday.
Mr O'Connor told RTÉ Radio One's Five Seven Liveprogramme Mr Sweeney had agreed to come off his hunger strike after he met with his lawyers in Buswells hotel this afternoon. He has now been taken to Tallaght Hospital for treatment.
Mr O'Connor told ireland.comhe had spoken to relatives of Mr Sweeney and that he was on a drip. However, he was feeling "fine", Mr O'Connor said.
He expressed disappointment it had taken so long to resolve the issue but he believed Mr Sweeney's meeting in Leinster House today had helped. Among those at the meeting were a number of TDs who are also GPs. Mr O'Connor said he believed the doctors had helped Mr Sweeney to reach a decision on his hunger strike and to understand the issues involved.
Meanwhile, the Labour spokeswoman on education, Ms Jan O'Sullivan, called on the Minister for Education to review the operation of the Residential Institutions Redress Act 2002 and the redress board to address criticisms and the lack of confidence in the board's work, as expressed by Mr Sweeney and other survivors of abuse.
"From speaking to Tom and others who have rallied outside the Dáil to support him, it is evident that there is widespread dissatisfaction with the operations of the board. It appears to be common for awards to be reduced when an initial offer is not accepted and the applicant proceeds to a hearing by the board.
"Because the operation of the board is in private, public scrutiny is not possible. However, one thing is clear: many survivors are raising questions that must be addressed."
Ms O'Sullivan said there was also a growing perception that those who are going on to tell their stories to the board are being "punished" for doing so. This was "completely intolerable, unjust and immoral", she said.
She called on the minister to review the legislation as a matter of urgency but said an immediate resolution to save Mr Sweeney had to be the "number one priority".