Full-scale excavation of Tuam mother and baby home to start in early 2023

Children's Minister Roderic O'Gorman said the Office of Public Works has also been tasked with locating a site in the area, which can be used as a support base for the operations. File photo: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images

Full-scale excavations of the former mother and baby home site in Tuam will begin early next year, the Children's Minister has indicated.

Roderic O'Gorman said a motion to establish a special agency to oversee the work will go through the Seanad next week. This will allow the Government to go to the public appointments service and begin the process of appointing the director.

Mr O'Gorman said: "We've done substantial work already in terms of the job specification and all that is ready to go. I would hope that we can start establishing the agency in the next number of weeks and preliminary works can take place on the site. I would hope that full scale excavations can begin early in 2023."

He said the Office of Public Works has also been tasked with locating a site in the area, which can be used as a support base for the operations.

Meanwhile, Mr O'Gorman said he will provide a full explanation to the Children's Committee on his decision to abandon a promised independent review of testimony provided by 550 mother and baby home survivors to the Confidential Committee of the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation.

Politicians rounded on the Minister in the Dáil over the decision, which was revealed by the Irish Examiner last month.

What's your view on this issue?

You can tell us here

Social Democrat TD Holly Cairns said it is "disgraceful" that it has become "standard practice with this Government" that survivors are made aware of developments through the media and are not directly consulted.

"There is a clear pattern. Any progress comes after soul-draining campaigning from a dedicated group of people and massive public outcry. When Government eventually reacts, it always reacts just enough to get a good headline and satisfy public attention until the news cycle moves on. "

Labour TD Sean Sherlock said survivors "feel deeply traumatised by the fact that the independent review is not now going to take place".

"I was very hopeful that we were on a pathway with this process and that by at least putting in place an independent review of the testimony, the Minister would have repaired the damage done and people would have moved in the same direction going forward. 

Until such time as that issue is dealt with and confronted, and until an independent review is carried out of testimony, nobody is going to have any confidence whatsoever in the process.

Responding, Mr O'Gorman said he is now working on a way to provide "an opportunity" to those that gave testimony "so that their words are not just hidden away on a tape somewhere but are actually part of the record".

He added: "I am conscious that there are other survivors who did not participate in the confidential committee who may wish to have their personal stories of what happened to them in institutions also expressed on the record."

He referred to correspondence he received from survivors after Commission member Professor Mary Daly admitted the testimonies had been discounted.

"What shone through most clearly in that correspondence was the concern from the 550 survivors who had given testimony that, having gone to the effort and, in many cases, trauma of reliving what happened, their words were nowhere. We know their testimonies are not in the Commission's report."