Magdalene laundries in Ireland

Ireland, February 19, 2013: Taoiseach Enda Kenny's apology in the Dáil A case study in an apology that improved under pressure. When the McAleese report found that the state had referred or facilitated at least 26.5 percent of admissions to the laundries, the government's first response stopped short of a full apology and drew sharp criticism. Two weeks later Kenny called it a national shame, said he was deeply sorry and offered his full and heartfelt apologies to the more than 10,000 women and girls who passed through the ten laundries between 1922 and 1996, with survivors in the gallery. He also asked Judge John Quirke to design a compensation scheme, which made the words count.