Institute defends role in McElwee case

Waterford Institute of Technology has defended its role in the Dr Niall McElwee case after a lecturer claimed that she had to make several complaints about Dr McElwee before he was told to stop using inappropriate images of children in his lectures.

Childcare specialist Dr McElwee resigned from his post at Athlone Institute of Technology (AIT) two weeks ago after news that in 2005 he had been convicted of attempted indecent assault in Amsterdam. The HSE will appoint an independent chairperson to conduct an inquiry into the case in the coming days.

It was also reported yesterday that, up to recently, Dr McElwee had been involved with gardaí in giving talks in schools to parents about drug misuse. RTÉ reported that, as recently as February, Dr McElwee had visited an Offaly school and shared a platform with a Garda expert on drug abuse.

Asked about this, a Garda spokesman told The Irish Times: "We have nothing further add to our statement of last Friday at this point."

The earlier statement said a Garda sergeant had been on the Amsterdam research trip with Dr McElwee in 2004. He had not been present when the attempted assault had happened but had reported the incident to Garda authorities.

After Dr McElwee's conviction was made public last week, it emerged that in the late 1990s, students at the Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) had complained about his use of slides which depicted the physical symptoms of child abuse.

Dr Frances Finnegan, a lecturer who worked with Dr McElwee at the WIT that time, told RTÉ's News at One that some students had to have therapy after seeing the graphic images.

"They were being showed to the social-care students, day students and, more worryingly, evening students, but also to art students," she said.

She made a complaint about the matter but three months later found that nothing had been done.

"In the end I went to the union . . . and we went to the registrar . . . Those slides were stopped that day."

In response, the WIT issued a statement saying: "In responding to complaints and concerns raised during 1999 in relation to Dr McElwee's teaching, the institute acted promptly and judiciously in order to discharge its responsibilities and obligations."

Meanwhile HSE West has confirmed that in 2003, Dr McElwee had spent one day a fortnight at a facility for children at risk in Salthill, over a six-month period.

A HSE spokeswoman said that, as with all students on placement, references were received and Garda checks completed. As is standard practice, Dr McElwee did not have unsupervised access with children at the centre.

This placement happened before the attempted assault in Amsterdam but after the complaints in WIT about the explicit images.

Fine Gael health spokesman Brian Hayes yesterday called for an expansion of the scope of the inquiry in light of continuing information.

He said a "disturbing vista" of institutional failure over a number of years was being opened up.

"The emerging picture seems to indicate a series of institutional failures which have serious implications for child protection and the scope of the inquiry should be broadened accordingly," he said.