Yearly reports on the state of children in care in Bermuda promised by Government in 1998, but which have never seen the light of day, need to be made now to give a clear picture of the needs of Bermuda?s troubled youngsters.

In the wake of concerns about moving the Child and Adolescent Services to the Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute, Senator Gina Spence-Farmer has called on Government to fulfil its promise as a starting point for working out what level of facilities are needed.

And she wants to see a tidying up of a muddle of legislation relating to children in care, including anomalies such as skewed punishment levels between those who reveal the identity of a registered child abuser compared to those who actually commit child abuse.

Currently a person who abuses or neglects a child can be fined $3,000 or be sent to prison for six months, yet a person who without permission reveals the identity of a registered child abuser can be fined $5,000 or be imprisoned for a year.

United Bermuda Party Sen. Spence-Farmer has been vocal in raising the concerns of parents and medical professionals regarding the decision to move Child and Adolescent Services from King Edward VII Memorial Hospital to MAWI.

Following a tour of the Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute and from speaking to its executive director Patrice Dill, she has been given some assurances regarding security issues of children being treated in an environment where adults with acute mental and addictive problems are treated.

Mrs. Spence-Farmer said: ?The concern is still security. This new space at MAWI needs to have some cameras in the outside areas as well as inside.?

She said places outside the secure new premises, such as parking lots, was an issue. The lack of town hall and public meetings before the decision was made had been wrong and the UBP senator wanted to know if the moving the facility to MAWI was to be a short-term solution or would now be the permanent home for the unit until the new hospital is built sometime in the next 15 years.

Pointing out that the yearly reports on children in care had not been forthcoming since being included in the 1998 Children?s Act, she said: ?The Government has not implemented fully this most important piece of the Act. The reports would help in the making of decisions and knowing what we need to do to move forward.?

A scattering of statistics here and there on teenage pregnancy and crime levels and children living in poverty were no substitute for a comprehensive annual report on the whole picture, said Sen. Spence-Farmer, who is the UBP?s spokeswoman for children?s issues.

She said the 2004 report on Ageing in Bermuda by Fordham University had provided invaluable data on the plight of seniors and helped identify areas needing attention. That is the type of report the Senator feels needs to be done for children and particularly children in care.

Having seen the plans for the new child care facility at MAWI, Sen. Spence-Farmer said: ?It has a play area and a garden, technically what they have on paper is an excellent plan. But if people do not take their children there what is the point??

The fear that children could be stigmatised by association because they have been placed at a facility connected with MAWI is one reason why parents and older children may decide not to use the unit, she said.

?Meetings should have been held first to buy in support for the project. Parents do not understand what is going on. They could have had a walk-through of the facility.?

Professional staff who look after the children have also made their concerns known to the Bermuda Hospitals Board and the Ministry of Health and Family Services.

Sen. Spence-Farmer said the Government?s 80-page legislation relating to children and children in care contained many good things, but also had areas that needed to be tidied up, promises adhered to and ?strong teeth? so that anyone who hurts or abuses a child knows the extent of the punishment they will face. She also wants to know if the Children and Adolescent Services would be permanently moved to MAWI until the new hospital is built, or if it might be re-accommodated at an expanded building at the current hospital site, or within the children?s Gosling Ward or at another location such as the old Berkeley Institute when the new school opens later this year.

And she wants to know how many names are on the Child Abuser Registry, is it a problem that is increasing or not?

?If we had that sort of information at our hands right now we could develop a plan for the next ten or 20 years,? she said.

Thanking Mrs. Dill for allowing her to view the MAWI plans and property, the Senator added: ?It is not about attacking anyone or judging any department, it is about serving our children.?

Health Ministry permanent secretary Kevin Monkman said the question of the missing annual reports on the state of children in care was being addressed.