Ms Magdalen Rogers:

I should say to the Chairman that we do not call for a special hearing by the committee on neuro-rehabilitation services lightly. To us, the failure of implementation of the strategy is so systemic at this stage we feel we need the time to explore that with members in more detail. It is impacting on all sorts of other initiatives within the health services. For example, we have an excellent trauma strategy in place that will fail unless neuro-rehabilitation services are put in place to carry on the interventions from a very successful trauma network. Again, we are not calling for this lightly. We are very aware of the demands on the committee's time but we just feel it has got to such an endemic stage of not progressing that the committee needs to lift the lid, point out why and ask some serious questions.