First cousins can help identify remains from the Tuam home site
Information campaign to launch
DNA samples will now be able to be taken from first cousins as part of the efforts to identify remains that have and will be recovered from the former Tuam Mother and Baby Home site.
President of Ireland Catherine Connolly last week signed into law the necessary amendment to legislation that will legally allow the samples to be collected and analysed by the team of the Director of Authorised Intervention Tuam.
As of the end of September, the remains of 109 babies and infants have been recovered as part of the ongoing works by the Forensic Excavation team at the site in the centre of a housing estate on the Dublin Road.
Excavation work at the plot known as the Memorial Garden has not yet started.
The Employment Equality and Institutional Burials (Amendment) Bill 2026 passed through the Houses of the Oireachtas and the Seanad and was considered and signed by President Connolly.
The Bill includes amendments to the Institutional Burials Act 2022 to allow first cousins to participate in the Tuam Identification Programme.“This amendment is grounded in updated scientific advice from Forensic Science Ireland and ensures that first cousins can now participate in the Tuam Identification Programme. I know this change will be welcomed by families who wish to support efforts to identify their relatives," remarked Minister for Children Norma Foley.
DNA samples began to be collected from vulnerable and close relatives last year and to date the total number of DNA reference samples taken is 74. Samples have been taken from people living in Ireland and America.
The remains of the 109 babies and infants that have been discovered to date have been brought to the new multi-million-euro forensic analysis facility at the HSE campus in Toghermore on the town’s outskirts, which opened in July.
The inclusion of first cousins in the sampling is expected to form part of a public information campaign to be launched soon by the Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention Tuam (ODAIT).
ODAIT encourages anyone who believes they may have a family member buried at the Tuam site to contact their office. The team can answer questions by calling +353 (0)1 539 1777, email info@dait.ie or visit www.odait.ie for more information.