Dr. Karin Denton:

One comment would be that colposcopy is a subspecialty of obstetrics and gynaecology. We have not looked specifically at the numbers, but the number of accredited colposcopists is very much smaller than the total number of consultants in obstetrics and gynaecology. I understand there are pressures on the workforce in terms of seeing all the women in a timely fashion. That was not specifically part of our remit. I agree with Dr. Scally that the most important thing is that they were not engaged with the programme. They were signed up to management meetings and they were not involved in drafting policy. Fundamentally, that is why they were disengaged. The number of individuals is quite small. It is considerably less than the number the Senator is quoting.