minister sent letter of concern over Bessborough site
Former Irish minister Katherine Zappone expressed serious concerns regarding the handling of the Bessborough Mother and Baby Home site in Cork. She criticized the lack of sufficient efforts to locate burial grounds and warned that ongoing construction could destroy potential human remains.
Why it matters
The controversy highlights ongoing tensions between property development and the preservation of sites linked to historical institutional abuse.
A submission to An Coimisiún Pleanála by former minister for children Katherine Zappone raised serious concerns over the mother and baby home site at Bessborough in Cork, according to the Special Advocate for survivors of institutional abuse.
Ms Zappone's letter was included in the collection of publicly available submissions to An Coimisiún Pleanála obtained by the Special Advocate’s office.
Two weeks ago, An Coimisiún Pleanála upheld planning permission for a 106-apartment development on the former Bessborough Mother and Baby Home site in Cork.
In correspondence, Ms Zappone, who as minister for children held responsibility for the oversight of the Mother and Baby Home Commission (2016-2020), made a number of observations, including that "enough was not done to determine burial sites" at Bessborough.
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