Second interim report of Mother and Baby Homes inquiry delayed

The second interim report of the inquiry into Mother and Baby Homes has been delayed because the Government has yet to respond to its recommendations, The Irish Times reports.

Children’s Minister Dr Katherine Zappone had pledged to publish the report by the end of March, but said it would be delayed further “for very good reasons”.

She said she would “clarify the time frame for the Government’s deliberative process in the coming week”.

Dr Zappone said she had not anticipated the time it would take to “engage with Cabinet colleagues on issues in the report that extend beyond my remit as the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs”.

Ms Zappone said the extra time was necessary to “respond to some of the recommendations in the report in a way that maybe we need to do differently than we have done in the past”.

She added: “I am getting very significant engagement across Government departments in order to find that way.”