Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry: 131 NI children sent to Australia

One hundred and thirty-one children from Northern Ireland, some as young as five, were sent to Australia as child migrants, an inquiry has heard.

Senior counsel to the Inquiry, Christine Smith QC, said it was her understanding that the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry (HIA) was the first to consider child migration from any part of the UK to Australia.

The HIA is examining the extent of child abuse in religious and state-run institutions in NI from 1922 to 1995.