Annie Hoey (Labour) | Oireachtas source

As I was thinking, I came up with another question. I know it has been said again and again but the teams in all our offices are doing the Lord's work trying to find and parse documents live as the meeting proceeds, which is exceedingly difficult. I appreciate that problems sometimes arise but it is incredibly difficult for members to do this. We want to get the best out of this meeting and engage with the Minister. People are firing in links on WhatsApp messages. That is not a good way for the Joint Committee on Health to do business on such a serious issue, or any issue for that matter.

When I asked about targeting particular groups I meant to ask about how women and pregnant people who have had to travel will be engaged with. Will there be engagement with maternity hospitals? They will have spoken to people who have had to travel. Continuity of care is very different between different maternity hospitals. Will there be an active attempt to engage with those who have had to travel? The Minister said he is concerned about the numbers still travelling and that it is a problem. How will we engage with those people? We assume people are engaged digitally. Will it be done through maternity hospitals? Will there be a direct call to GPs? Will Well Woman clinics and the Irish Family Planning Association be reached out to directly?

This matter has gone out for public consultation and there are terms of reference. We are circling back to the business of the chair. Has the decision to that before the appointment of a chair pre-empted, neutered or hampered the work the chair can do? The questions have gone out for public consultation. Perhaps the expert, on whom we may spend up to a €100,000, may have a different idea of how it would work or have a different approach. The chair will now have to work in the framework of the questions. Will this neuter or hamper his or her work?