Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

That is fair enough. The terms of reference were delayed. The Minister announced in late April that HIQA was going to carry out a review of emergency care and it took three months for the terms of reference to be agreed. The reason, which was legitimate, was that the Minister was waiting for the Clarke report. If the Minister does not have any memories of this instantaneously, it probably was not necessary. What really concerns me is the timeline. People in the mid-west cannot get their heads around why it will take HIQA nine months to come back with a comprehensive review. Whenever the date of the next general election is, the election will be over and the programme for government will be negotiated before this report is on the Minister's desk. Why has it taken so long? Can the Minister cut the timeline by six months and get this report on his desk by Christmas?