Barnardos Submission to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Child Protection

Abstract

Barnardos welcomes the opportunity to feed into the deliberations of the Oireachtas Committee on Child Protection. Barnardos believes that the principle of the child’s best interests being of first and paramount consideration should underpin any legislative or policy development. It is this principle that is enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) to which Ireland is a signatory. Children and young people are among the most vulnerable members of our society, and that is why our laws have extended extra protection to them until they reach adulthood. The qualities of childhood include immaturity, innocence, trusting and fun loving and it is these qualities that people can seek to abuse so children deserve the highest level of protection from our laws.