Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

To go back to a few issues, the people who most require public health messages are those least likely to hear them. Professor Turner spoke about socioeconomic groupings in terms of obesity and other health side effects of smoking and poor diet. Many people have poor educational backgrounds. To get the message to people who most require it is often the most difficult element.

Why is there a lower incidence of neural tube defects in Dublin than in the rest of the country? What is the earliest possible point at which neural tube defects can be diagnosed during the gestation period? Professor Turner stated that Ireland had a higher rate of neural tube defects than other European countries, although rates have fallen in recent decades.

Why did the rates fall? Is it possible that the pregnancy would have been terminated in another country? Where do those statistics lie, in terms of trying to build up a base as to the real incidents of neural tube defects in this country? If we are trying to bring forward an educational programme, it is important to target the people who most need it. We know, for example, that terminations are more likely to be sought by those in higher socio-economic groupings as opposed to those in the downwards groupings. What are the statistics based on exactly? Without those statistics, the wrong people might be targeted. I am quite sure all of these things have been addressed in the research.