Lisa Chambers (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We are here to discuss the Estimates, but I will focus on CervicalCheck as it obviously has an impact on the health budget. On the last occasion the Minister appeared before the committee, I asked a question about the decision to offer the free out-of-cycle smear tests and who gave the Minister that advice. After pressing him for a while the Minister said it was his idea but that it was supported and agreed by the chief medical officer. There was no caveat attached to that. The question asked at the time was about a free blanket offer to any woman who wanted one. The Minister told the committee that the chief medical officer supported what was essentially the Minister's idea and decision, that nobody else advised him to do that and that he had come up with the idea himself. However, new evidence has come to light that the chief medical officer did not support a blanket offer of free smear tests to everybody.