2 entries for Mr Matthews

Furthermore in his evidence before CICA on 4th March 2003 Mr Paddy Matthews referred to the use of a safe to hold sensitive and confidential files. Mr Matthews claimed that Mr Luttrel, Head of Document Registry Unit, kept confidential files in a little safe in the document registry in Tyrone House. When asked what type of documents were kept in this safe, Mr Matthews replied: ‘I am only going on what I heard now, but that any offences with a suggestion of a sexual offence in them were kept there.’ Although the Kelly Report stated that all reasonable steps had been taken regarding the issue of safe storage, Mr Matthews later went on to state that he too had a safe in his office, which contained documents of a ‘sexual nature’. He said he had no log of the documents contained therein. In further evidence before CICA, Mr Matthews claimed that he had only ever heard of one complaint of a sexual nature (relating to Clonmel) He added: ’I cannot remember any other complaint now, to tell you the truth. I think if there was, I would have heard it.’

At a meeting of the inter-departmental group on 4th February, 1977 it was reported that the group accepted that the major problem facing the residential homes was one of finance. Reference was made to the various representations which had been received in recent months expressing dissatisfaction with the level of financing of residential homes. The main contention in these representations was that the existing capitation grants are not sufficient to enable the payment of adequate remuneration to the staff employment in the homes. Mr. Matthews said that the salaries were as low as £16 per week and that persons in receipt of such low salaries had a legitimate grievance. The policy of group homes necessitated more staff notwithstanding that the overall number of children was decreasing. Another problem is that some of the religious orders are threatening to pull out of such work, and in any event the number of vocations had declined significantly in the last twenty years.