Minister urges swift inquiry into lecturer

Child protection groups and the Minister of State for Children, Brendan Smith, have urged that the Health Service Executive (HSE) inquiry into the Dr Niall McElwee case be conducted urgently and published swiftly after completion.

The childcare specialist was convicted of attempted indecent assault in Amsterdam in 2004, but the matter only came to public attention last week when it emerged that he had resigned as director of the centre for child and youth care learning at the Athlone Institute of Technology. The HSE is to appoint an independent chairperson to conduct an inquiry into the facts surrounding the case.

Meanwhile, Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT), which previously employed Dr McElwee, said it did not notify the Garda about a complaint involving the lecturer seven years ago.

Students had complained to the then South Eastern Health Board (SEHB) that Dr McElwee was using inappropriate and explicit photographs in his child protection lectures. The SEHB contacted the lecturer and ordered that these materials not be used again.

Asked if the WIT had contacted gardaí to establish if possession of the material could have further implications, a WIT statement said: "An Garda Síochána were not notified that Dr McElwee was in possession of this material which he and others argued was retained solely for professional academic and research purposes in the area of child sexual abuse."

The statement said that the college's review of the lecture material "was considered to be adequate at that time". It continued: "Waterford Institute of Technology is committed to learning any relevant lessons from this episode and continues to review its complaints procedures and processes."

Announcing its inquiry into the Dr McElwee case on Saturday, a HSE statement said it "fully expects the full cooperation of the Garda Síochána with this inquiry, particularly in establishing the exact sequence of events and information shared".

A Garda sergeant had been on the Amsterdam trip with Dr McElwee, but not present at the time of the incident which involved four young American women in a hotel room. Garda spokesman Kevin Donohoe said the sergeant had reported the incident to his superiors and to the Midland Health Board on his return.

The HSE said it would agree the terms of reference for the inquiry in the coming days and the investigation would commence "as soon as is practicable".

The findings would be made public "subject to any legal restrictions".

The Irish Society for the Protection of Children (ISPCC) said the inquiry must be "in depth and widespread" as the case had "very serious implications" for child protection.

Paul Gilligan, ISPCC chief executive, pointed out that the conviction did not emerge because of child protection procedures but because the media had been alerted. He said the case highlighted the need for the Government to lead the way in drawing up EU protocols for the sharing of information between police authorities.

Barnardos chief executive Fergus Finlay urged that the inquiry be conducted swiftly. "It's very important that we get answers quickly," he said. "We need to know what lessons need to be learned from this."

Fine Gael's health spokesman, Brian Hayes, said the HSE had questions to answer about the time scale surrounding the incident.

He said the HSE must clarify if the Midland Health Board had commissioned research from Dr McElwee after it had been informed about his conviction for attempted indecent assault.