Sunday, November 8, 2009 Previous editions
Friday, July 03, 2009
SHANE and Gillian Malley live day in, day out, with the tragic memory of their son Arran hanging lifeless from the cord of a window blind in their home.
They were forced to relive the horror of that February afternoon again at the inquest into the two-year-old’s death.
But while the pain is still fresh, the heartache has been lessened by Cork City Coroner’s Court’s call to ensure a similar needless tragedy is never repeated.
Presiding over a verdict of accidental death, coroner Dr Myra Flynn Cullinane called for voluntary EU safety standards – brought in just days after the tragedy – to be immediately enforced.
The call has come too late for Arran. But while enforcing the voluntary standards is the first step to prevent another tragedy, the Malleys are adamant it must go further, with their solicitor Tom Coughlan confirming he will call on Government to make the standards mandatory.
"They should be safe out of the box; the voluntary standards are completely lax," Shane Malley explained outside the court.
The National Standards Safety Authority has fully supported the call and has written to over 200 manufacturers and suppliers explaining the implications of the new EU standards.
However, despite the clear dangers, an Irish Examiner investigation has found four of Ireland’s leading DIY stores are still failing to enforce the five-month old voluntary child protection standards.
By selling window blinds without life-saving safety devices, campaigners have warned the companies are risking another tragedy.
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