Children's Minister leads tributes to Christine Buckley

Children’s Minister Frances Fitzgerald was among the politicians who paid tribute to Christine Buckley, who she described as a “courageous and consistent campaigner” for the rights of the child.

Expressing her condolences to the family and friends of Ms Buckley, the minister said she had “led the charge to lift the veil on Ireland’s dark past and shameful legacy of child abuse”.

Tánaiste and Labour party leader Eamon Gilmore said she had “suffered greatly” as a child in 1950s Ireland but had “played a pivotal role” in shining a light on the abuse suffered by children in the industrial schools and “paved the way” for others to tell their stories.