THE OMBUDSMAN FOR Children has expressed “extreme concern” over the State’s response to a child in North Dublin who went missing years ago and is now presumed dead.

In a statement issued today, Ombudsman Dr Niall Muldoon described the situation as “shocking”, and questioned how a child known to Tusla, the State’s child and family agency, could disappear despite having been in contact with multiple agencies.

“It is shocking that we are dealing with a situation where a child, who at one point was known to the Tusla, could have disappeared four years ago and is now presumed dead,” Dr Muldoon said.

“How could a child have been born, dealt with all the relevant agencies and services, and then apparently, just disappear?”

He emphasised the State’s duty to safeguard the rights of children, saying: “The State has a duty to promote and protect the rights of all children in Ireland, primary to this is a child’s right to safety and protection from harm.”

The missing boy, now aged seven, was last in contact with Tusla in 2020.

Since then, very little is known about his whereabouts, prompting Gardaí to conduct an ongoing search in the Donabate area, which has entered its third day.

Part of a field near the original site has been cordoned off, and the search is set to resume tomorrow.

Gardaí at the site of a search for the body of a 7-year-old boy in Donabate. Rollingnews Rollingnews

Dr Muldoon expressed particular concern about the government and Tusla’s decision to refer the case to the National Review Panel (NRP), describing the body as lacking statutory power and independent authority to publish reports.

“This is a structure that has no statutory power, has no independent authority to publish reports, and both Tusla and the Department of Children agreed that it is not fit for purpose since 2018,” he said.

Dr Muldoon highlighted parallels with the case of Kyran Durnin, who disappeared just over a year ago and whose case was also referred to the NRP without a published report.

The Ombudsman pointed to his office’s Child Death Review report, published in April, which outlined serious concerns about the effectiveness of the NRP and called for the establishment of an independent, statutory, child-centred review mechanism.

He added that the NRP’s lack of statutory authority has limited its ability to access information, engage with agencies, and maintain proper governance.

“The National Review Panel was never established on a statutory basis and this fundamental flaw has greatly impacted its ability to undertake its work effectively with limitations in accessing information, engaging with other agencies and fundamental governance,” he said.

Dr Muldoon confirmed that his office has written to Taoiseach Micheál Martin requesting “an urgent update” on the establishment of the statutory child death review mechanism. This has been accepted by government and included in the Programme for Government, but has yet to be assigned to a lead department.

“It is not good enough that Tusla’s answer to a serious incident like the disappearance and possible death of a child is a referral to a review process that reports back into the Board of Management of Tusla. It is not accurate to say this is a powerful vehicle that can provide the answers needed in these serious cases,” he said.

He added that the Ombudsman’s Office will also engage with Minister for Children Norma Foley, as well as senior Tusla officials, to explore how statutory powers might be exercised to examine systemic issues relating to children who disappear.

Today, Tusla has been ordered to carry out wellbeing checks on 38,000 children whose cases were closed during the Covid-19 lockdowns, according to Children’s Minister Norma Foley.

Tusla CEO Kate Duggan said the checks will determine whether children are accounted for, accessing education, or receiving necessary services.

Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan and Taoiseach Micheál Martin have both urged caution in assigning blame until garda investigations are concluded, while acknowledging systemic issues within Tusla that may need to be addressed.

Full statement from the Ombudsman for Children Dr Niall Muldoon:

It is shocking that we are dealing with a situation where a child, who at one point was known to the Tusla, could have disappeared four years ago and is now presumed dead.

How could that have happened?

How could a child have been born, dealt with all the relevant agencies and services, and then apparently, just disappear?

The State has a duty to promote and protect the rights of all children in Ireland, primary to this is a child’s right to safety and protection from harm.

I am extremely concerned that the major response from Government and from Tusla, so far, to the disappearance and possible death of this little boy in North Dublin, is a referral to the National Review Panel. This is a structure that has no statutory power, has no independent authority to publish reports, and both Tusla and the Department of Children agreed that it is not fit for purpose since 2018. Just over a year ago Kyran Durnin’s case was also referred to the same National Review Panel and no report has yet been published.

We know that this child had contact with Tusla up until 2020 but after that, very little is known as it appears he just silently disappeared, the same as Kyran Durnin did little over a year ago. And yet we still have no answers or insights into the role of services with Kyran and what, if anything, could have been done to have prevented his disappearance.

In April of this year the OCO published the Child Death Review report which outlined serious concerns about the effectiveness of the National Review Panel and the urgent need for an independent, timely, child centred statutory review mechanism to learn from the deaths of any child in Ireland. A child rarely exists only within one service and no doubt this child, like Kyran, may have been known to a range of other services, hence the need for a broad ranging review to learn and hopefully try to prevent other deaths. That is beyond the scope of the National Review Panel, and it is disrespectful to the families involved that this is the limited response by the State, to find out what happened, and what could have been done better.

The National Review Panel was never established on a statutory basis and this fundamental flaw has greatly impacted its ability to undertake its work effectively with limitations in accessing information, engaging with other agencies and fundamental governance. In our Child Death Review, we recommended that the Department of Children, Disability and Equality engage with our Office to find a resolution pending the establishment of the new statutory child death review mechanism. We also recommended the establishment of a statutory Child Death Review mechanism. This has been accepted by Government and included in the Programme for Government but the Department of An Taoiseach has not yet appointed the relevant Department to lead on this. I have written to An Taoiseach requesting an urgent update on this.

It is not good enough that Tusla’s answer to a serious incident like the disappearance and possible death of a child is a referral to a review process that reports back into the Board of Management of Tusla. It is not accurate to say this is a powerful vehicle that can provide the answers needed in these serious cases.

The Ombudsman for Children’s Office has written to Department of An Taoiseach to seek an update on progress on establishing the statutory child death review mechanism.

We will also be engaging with the Minister for Children, as well as senior officials in Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, to consider how we may exercise out statutory powers in examining the systemic issues relating to children that disappear.