Marc MacSharry (Fianna Fail)

I propose an amendment to the Order of Business to ask the Minister for Health to come to the House to explain the situation with regard to the national cancer control programme and its relationship to pre-election promises and commentary which has followed since then. On 9 February, the Minister, Deputy James Reilly, visited the north west of the country and spoke of the issue concerning cancer services in that area, in particular the commitments made by the now Minister of State, Deputy Perry, the now Senator Susan O'Keeffe, the now Deputy Tony McLoughlin, the Tánaiste, Deputy Gilmore, the Minister, Deputy Quinn, and the Taoiseach himself to assure, first, that cancer services would be returned, second, that they would be returned within 100 days, third, that the Labour Party would ensure a ninth centre of excellence would be located at that location and, fourth, to assure everybody in a live debate which is still available on the Internet that each of those individuals - Perry, McLoughlin and O'Keeffe - would resign their membership of the Oireachtas if that was not carried through.

To follow on and give some context, on 9 February the Minister, Deputy Reilly, when talking about these issues in Sligo, assured the people of the north west, some 200,000 people, that the door was not closed on this issue. At that specific moment in time, Dr. Susan O'Reilly, the head of the national cancer control programme was giving an interview to irishhealth.com stating: "It's definitely not going to happen". To use, neglect and mislead a section of the people of Ireland, some 250,000 people-----