UN urged to pressure Ireland over protection for vulnerable children

Children's Ombudsman Dr Niall Muldoon said any country, such as Ireland, which has ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, is obliged to deliver on its commitments to children - something he said Ireland had "failed miserably to do" in the last economic crash.

The Ombudsman for Children has urged the United Nations to put pressure on Ireland to step up its efforts to help the most vulnerable and protect children, even in any economic crisis sparked by Covid-19.

In its submission to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child on the List of Issues Prior to Reporting (LOIPR) for the fourth periodic examination of Ireland, the Office of the Ombudsman said "the crisis caused by Covid-19 has amplified existing inequalities experienced by particular groups of children in Ireland".