Mr. Stephen Mulvany:

There are a couple of points and my colleague, Mr. McCallion, might want to comment. First, I have sat in Temple Street hospital with young children for far too many hours and we agree that is not acceptable. I cannot comment on the specific case as to whether any or all of the people sitting there could have been dealt with by a GP because I do not know. As for why I decided to send the crisis management team on 22 December, we were not seeing the prospective clear-out that is usually seen in hospitals around Christmas and RSV was still on the increase, if I recall correctly, at that stage. Moreover, influenza was developing at a higher level than had been seen at least in the previous five seasons, which certainly influenced my decision. In terms of some of the specifics the Deputy mentioned-----