27/06/2013

Govt Announces Magdalene Redress Fund

Labour TD for Wicklow, Anne Ferris, has said that the Magdalene redress fund announced by the Government is a small but significant step in helping survivors move on with their lives.

She said: "These women have endured the most harrowing of experiences, and their pain is unfathomable. No sum of money can ever take that away.

"This fund, however, will go some way towards helping Magdalenes move on with their lives by seeking to make ex gratia payments to those who were admitted to and worked in these laundries. It sees that the Magdalenes concerned are provided with a range of supports, such as medical cards, various State benefits, as well access to housing and psychiatric services such as counselling.

"In my view, the real tragedy of the Magdalene story was that the hurt felt by many women was exacerbated by the failure of successive Governments to listen to their stories, or to establish the real facts about what happened to them.

"The Labour Party said from the outset that it was committed to listen and to act on this issue. The announcement is a manifestation of that commitment, and I wish to commend my colleague, Minister Kathleen Lynch, for her extensive work in this area in recent months."

(CD/JP)

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