Women from Magdalene laundries invited to apply to redress scheme

Women who worked in one of 12 of the State’s Magdalene laundries, but who were admitted to adjoining institutions, have been invited to consider applying for payments from the Government’s restorative justice ex gratia scheme.

The scheme was approved by the then government in 2013.

Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan called on the women to consider making an application, following a recommendation by Ombudsman Peter Tyndall and a scoping exercise carried out by an interdepartmental group in consultation with the Ombudsman's office.

Mr Tyndall published an investigation last year which highlighted the exclusion from the scheme of some women who had worked in the laundries and who had lived in the convents in which they were located.

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It arose as a result of 27 complaints to his office, primarily in relation to admission to the scheme and the assessment of the duration of stay by the administrator of the scheme.

The report, Opportunity Lost, examining the administration of the scheme also highlighted the way in which women who were eligible, but were deemed to lack capacity, were unable to access it.

‘Sorriest episodes’

In his findings, Mr Tyndall said the incarceration of women in the Magdalene laundries and the forced labour to which they were subjected was “one of the sorriest episodes in our history”.

“It was exacerbated by the failure of Irish society to act over many years to highlight and tackle the injustice suffered by these women.

The heartfelt apology of former taoiseach Enda Kenny and the creation of a restorative justice scheme were intended to reflect the shame of the nation and offer some acknowledgement and recompense to the women," he wrote.

He said some women had been excluded from the scheme as a result of the department’s “narrow interpretation” of the criteria.

In a statement on Saturday, Mr Flanagan said he was committed to honouring the commitments made by Mr Kenny to the Magdalene women in 2013 and the full implementation of the scheme introduced for women who were admitted to and worked in the 12 named institutions covered by it.

“I am happy that we are making good progress in implementing the recommendations of the Ombudsman in his report of November 2017 on the operation of the scheme,” he said.

An advertisement carried in newspapers in Ireland and the UK this weekend deals with his recommendation that the scheme be applied to residents of those 14 adjoining institutions who worked in the laundries of the 12 Magdalene institutions concerned.

694 applicants

“In relation to the other recommendations in the Ombudsman’s report, Senior Counsel Mary O’Toole is in the process of examining the 200 or so cases where an issue may arise on the assessment of the length of stay in an institution.

She is also reviewing the cases a small number of women where an approved award has been made but cannot be paid because of capacity issues,” Mr Flanagan said.

"It is important to record here that, to date, 694 applicants to the Magdalene scheme have received their ex-gratia payments from the vote of the Department of Justice and Equality at a cost of €26.1 million.

“The terms of the scheme recommended by Justice (John) Quirke (in 2014) included the payment of lump sums from €11,500 to €100,000, special access to health care, upgrading of pension entitlements to the full State pension for those who had reached retirement age and payment of a weekly sum of €100 inclusive of other State payments to others. The scheme remains open to new applications,” Mr Flanagan said.

An expression of interest form for those who would like to know if they might be entitled to benefits under the scheme is available from the department online, by email to RJScheme@justice.ie or by phone from 01-4768660.

A full list of the institutions included in the redress scheme, and their adjoining institutions, is also available on the department's website at justice.ie