Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and his officials for giving of their time. I wish Mr Reid the very best of luck in the not inconsiderable task he has been handed. There is a huge amount of work to be done.

I will return to the question of access, but I will start by making two specific points. One concerns the availability of Spinraza, an issue we have all been following closely. There are families who are watching intently and will have noted that the NHS recently approved Spinraza for use. The clock is ticking for their children and they asked us to put the following three questions directly to the Minister. Is there a definitive date on which a decision on funding will be communicated? Is the answer "yes" or "no"? What is causing the delays in the decision-making process relative to what is happening in other EU countries? Is there an explanation for them? Is there a definitive timeline for how quickly access to the drug will be made available if the decision is positive?