Missing Persons Helpline
1149. Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform his proposals for a permanent missing persons helpline; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1484/06]
Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell): I propose to take Questions Nos. 1075, 1076, 1082, 1084, 1086, 1087, 1091, 1108, 1120, 1149 and 1156 together.
Funding of €110,000 in respect of a national missing persons helpline made available by my Department in 2002 and 2003 was channelled through the Victim Support organisation and was in addition to the ongoing funding which that organisation received for the provision of services to victims of crime. This funding was provided subject to the conditions that no funding beyond the year 2003 should be implied and audited accounts should be provided to my Department on a calendar year basis. To date no audited accounts have been received in my Department.
The Victim Support organisation received financial support from the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform from 1985 to 31 March 2005. Almost €5.5 million had been made available over the five years up to 2005. In March 2005, I decided that continued funding of the Victim Support organisation could no longer be justified due to serious concerns relating to governance, accountability for public funds and poor service levels, after a lengthy period of instability within the organisation.
The missing persons helpline was operated from the headquarters of Victim Support alongside Victim Support’s own helpline for victims of crime. I understand that Victim Support Ltd. closed down its headquarters operation during 2005 and a number of staff were made redundant, including the person employed to operate the missing persons helpline. My Department had no role in the decision of Victim Support Ltd. to make a number of its staff redundant, other than to insist that statutory requirements - notice, holiday pay and so forth - be met and the interests of the staff protected.
Also in March 2005, I established a new commission for the support of victims of crime to devise an appropriate support framework for victims of crime into the future and to disburse funding for victim support measures. The commission is entirely independent in its decision making and examines each application on its merits. The commission received an application from the Missing in Ireland Support Service for €71,600 to establish, staff and operate a helpline for missing persons. After careful consideration of the application, the commission decided to offer funding of €25,000. This offer was rejected by the Missing in Ireland Support Service. It should be borne in mind in this context that the commission is charged with funding support services for victims of crime and that, while some persons who are missing are crime victims, most are not.
It remains open to the Missing In Ireland Support Service to make an application to my Department for assistance if it so wishes. The Missing Persons Bureau in Garda headquarters is responsible for maintaining data relating to missing persons. All cases of a person reported missing in suspicious circumstances remain open and under ongoing review and investigation until the person is located or, in the case of a missing person who is presumed drowned, a verdict to that effect by the coroner.
At present, local Garda management takes direct responsibility for missing persons cases and special investigation teams are appointed as necessary. All missing persons are recorded on the PULSE system. When a person is reported missing, the local Garda superintendent takes direct responsibility for the investigation and will appoint an investigation team to include any specialised unit deemed necessary, for example, the National Bureau of Criminal investigation or the Technical Bureau. The systems put in place by the Garda Síochána to manage and deal with reports of missing persons are in line with best international police practice and Garda management is satisfied, and has assured me, that the systems in place are adequate to deal with any reported case of a missing person.