© Belfast Telegraph, UKHealth Minister Edwin Poots.
Reports sounding alarm bells over the sexual exploitation of children in care homes in Northern Ireland date back seven years, the Assembly has been told.
The chair of Stormont's health committee, Maeve McLaughlin, said it was "shocking" that reports in 2006 pre-dated the recent Barnardo's report which was itself published in 2011. Her comments came as Assembly parties united yesterday to voice concern over the recent revelations and backed an inquiry involving Health Minister Edwin Poots and Justice Minister David Ford into claims that 22 teenagers missing from children's homes were sexually exploited.
Referring to a Social Services Inspectorate report called 'Our Children And Young People: Our Shared Responsibility', she said: "Although the vulnerable nature of young people involved in sexual exploitation is shocking, it is just as shocking that reports date back to 2006 in which organisations and agencies were recommended and mandated to respond to the abuse of children.
"That, in anybody's terms, is wrong and has failed children."
The Sinn Fein MLA also welcomed what she called Mr Poots' change of heart moving from the appointment of an independent expert to reviewing practices to establishing an independent expert-led inquiry - but said a number of questions still need to be answered.
"An inquiry with proper independence, powers to investigate and accountability mechanisms is required (and) if departments have failed after they have been mandated to act, they will need to be accountable," she said.
