Radical change needed in assessing child sex abuse complaints 

The Special Rapporteur on Child Protection has recommended expanding the role of the National Vetting Bureau. File picture.

The Special Rapporteur on Child Protection has recommended expanding the role of the National Vetting Bureau and using data protection laws so Tusla can assess complaints of child sexual abuse without risking re-traumatising survivors because of the need to inform an alleged perpetrator that an allegation has been made against them.

The recommendations are included in the first report as Rapporteur of Dr Conor O'Mahony, which also argues that the current law - Section 3 of the Child Care Act 1991 - covering this area "contains more gaps than detail", creating a "legislative void" and so "it has been left to Tusla to fill in the blanks in its policy documents".