Professor Kieran Murphy:

As part of the consultation process for the development of the Medical Council's guidance, we consulted widely with a range of stakeholders, including members of the public and of the profession, medical schools, postgraduate training bodies and advocacy groups. The council decided, based on consultation, the appropriate guidance it would publish for doctors.

The question about capacity relates to the capacity of the health care system to manage rather than the capacity of the individual patient to give consent, which is clearly dealt with separately in the guide. It is a matter for the employer to determine the capacity within the health care system. This is a question that should be posed to the obstetricians and psychiatrists when they make their submissions later this morning.

The third set of questions referred to what was termed deficiencies in the current guidelines. I have tried to outline the extraordinary lengths to which the council has gone in consulting about the guidance it gives to doctors. The guide was issued following an extensive period of consultation.

The issue of evidence-based guidance reflects earlier questions and also reflects our earlier replies. Like the guide, medicine is continuously evolving and changing. The guidance the Medical Council gives to doctors needs to reflect the evolution of medicine. Ms Spillane may wish to add something further.