Scouting Ireland ,like BSA, abuse, liability, insurance

[RememberSchiff 3655]

...Scouting Ireland now faces similar problems identifying past insurance records required to help indemnify the organisation against the cost of future legal cases....“At the moment there is only one insurer who is willing to insure Scouting Ireland in this country,” Aisling Kelly told the private meeting. The historic documentation for the CBSI was in “much better shape” than records from the SAI, she said. ...The organisation does not have substantial financial reserves. Twice this year its State funding was suspended by Minister for Children Katherine Zappone, due to governance concerns following controversy over the flawed handling of the 2016 rape allegation.

An ongoing review by Scouting Ireland has identified 317 alleged child sex abuse victims, and 212 alleged abusers.

Evidence from the review details abuse that occurred at “all levels within the organisation”, cases where information was “covered up” and alleged perpetrators were permitted to “move from group to group”, Scouting Ireland’s new chairperson Aisling Kelly told a stunned meeting of senior scout leaders on Monday.

The organisation has taken a hit in relation to the public, but the national scandal has not eroded the trust between parents and local leaders in Dundalk, he said.....

In mid-November the organisation announced the review had identified 108 alleged abuse victims, and 71 alleged perpetrators. Three weeks on and both figures have nearly tripled, as more abuse survivors continue to come forward. The ongoing review found the majority of the alleged abuse occurred between the 1960s and 1990s.

Historic abuse scandals have shaken scouting organisations in the United States, Australia and the UK in recent years.

If Scouting Ireland is forced to bear the entire cost of lawsuits from past abuse in the SAI itself, the cost is “going to be huge,” McClenaghan said.

Scouting Ireland’s approach to the abuse revelations has been to set up a victim- support scheme to provide counselling services to survivors. There is a recognition inside the organisation that if large numbers of alleged abuse victims pursue civil cases against Scouting Ireland, the costs could collapse the organisation.

More details at source:

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/scouting-ireland-faces-uncertain-future-in-wake-of-child-sex-abuse-scandal-1.3731670

[RememberSchiff 3655]

The chairwoman of Scouting Ireland’s board Aisling Kelly, a practicing attorney, has resigned after just three months in the position due to work commitments. Adrian Tennant  has been selected as her replacement.

"The current board has begun to introduce a series of emergency financial measures to deal with the cost of the unfolding abuse scandal, such as funding a victims’ support scheme.

The board has suspended a 10 per cent rebate from local groups’ annual membership fees, that previously was paid back by the national office. The rebate had been paid towards providing support for the grassroots levels of the youth organisation.

Membership fees in the organisation bring in close to €2 million, based on latest financial filings, meaning the decision could generate around €200,000. The board is also expected to make a decision on whether to increase membership fees in the coming weeks.

Scouting Ireland has 40,000 juvenile members, and formed in 2004 following a merger of the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland and the Scout Association of Ireland. The majority of the 317 cases of alleged past abuse related to a period between the 1960s and the 1990s."

Source:

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/chair-of-scouting-ireland-to-leave-role-after-three-months-1.3752642