The office of ombudsman with responsi-bility for children will be established under the last piece of legislation enacted in the 28th Dáil.
The Ombudsman for Children Bill establishes the office to promote the rights and welfare of children and to investigate complaints against public bodies, including hospitals and schools. Ms Mary Hanafin, Minister of State with responsibility for children, said it was "important legislation and is a huge step forward for children and young people".
She believed it would help highlight the rights and needs of young people and children and would work effectively with public bodies. It would continue to put pressure on those bodies to "fulfil their statutory duties" and the Government would continue to invest badly needed resources.
Ms Róisín Shortall, Labour's spokeswoman on education and children, said the calibre of the person appointed was critical if it was to fulfil its potential to be "extremely powerful". Its success would also depend on the resources put into it.
