THE OFFICIAL inquiry into the running of the former Leas Cross nursing home in north Dublin has been granted an extension until the end of the year.
The Commission of Investigation, headed by barrister Diarmuid O'Donovan, was due to report this month after being established in April 2007.
At the first Cabinet meeting after the summer break, the Government decided that the time period for the inquiry should be extended until the end of the year.
The Government yesterday said that there had been delays in obtaining necessary documentation because of the sheer volume of files that have been made available.
A spokesman added that there had been no request for additional funding.
Leas Cross closed in August 2005 in the wake of a Prime Time Investigatesreport which found serious problems relating to the running and supervision of the home. The programme used hidden cameras as part of its investigations.
The first inquiry into the nursing home by consultant geriatrician Prof Des O'Neill found the level of residence care within Leas Cross constituted "institutional abuse".
It was published in 2006.
Separately, the Cabinet also agreed yesterday to allow a one-month extension for the report of an investigation into the deaths of a family of four in Monageer, Co Wexford, last year.
The bodies of Adrian Dunne, his wife Ciara, and their two young children were discovered in April 2007 at their home. It emerged that there was an "at risk" concern about the two children at about that time.
The inquiry has examined the respective interactions of the Garda Síochána, and that of the HSE, with the family in the run-up to the tragedy.
Three days before the deaths, the Dunnes had visited an undertaker inquiring about funeral arrangements.
The inquiry, chaired by barrister Kate Brosnan, has been examining the circumstances of the deaths as well as the dealings the States services had in relation to the case.
The report had been due to be published earlier this year but the time for completion was extended until this month.
The Government yesterday said that it agreed to a further one-month extension to October because of what it said were the "complex legal issues involved".
The members of the inquiry team include former assistant Garda commissioner Jim McHugh. It was originally set up in June 2007 but began its work in January this year, following the completion of a Garda report into the incident.
