The Labour Party has issued a statement calling for a formal State apology to the survivors of the Magdalene Laundries.

It also wants to see the provision of services for the women involved.

The Labour Parliamentary Party met today to consider the McAleese Report saying it is their united view that the women should be vindicated and honoured, and that they should receive justice.

It said the issuing of a formal apology needs to be addressed in this context.

"Thanks to the work of Kathleen Lynch, both as a Minister and previously as a campaigner, a light has been shone on the darkest recesses of Ireland’s history" they said in the statement.

'For the first time, we know the full story'

"She took a careful and principled approach as an opposition spokesperson, and has turned that into action by commissioning the McAleese report".

"As a result, for the first time, the full story of what happened to these women is out there, and this is largely thanks to the determination of the Labour Party".

"More than any other political party, we have, over the decades, challenged the backward conservative society that served as a back drop to institutions like the Magdalene Laundries" it added.

They say the report will also allow for dealing with the stigma that these women "have suffered for decades" as well as putting in place a process of engagement with the survivors and their families.

These surviviours spoke about their experiences yesterday.