David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Is there one person who is the lead, the champion, the person who is ultimately responsible? For any strategy to work it is necessary to make sure there are clear lines of communication so that I and everybody else in this Chamber and outside this Chamber knows who is responsible for the strategy. I ask that because I want to make this point first. Actually I am going to put my questions to Dr. Henry on this, because he was listening to the Irish Cancer Society outside and would have heard what its representatives said. In a very sobering comment, they said that they were no longer confident that the national cancer strategy will lead to further significant improvements in cancer survival rates because of what they see as a perceived lack of funding. They say that over seven years there were two years in which adequate funding was given and five years when there was not. For 2024, as we know, right across the health service additional capacity or funding is constrained. Given that there is a national strategy that has recommendations and has plans to develop and increase capacity and so on, is there a business case made or a financial case made on a yearly basis that goes to the Minister seeking additional funding? Was that done in 2024?