Mr. Damien McCallion:

I will make one or two comments to the Deputy. On the wider public concern that was raised around private smears, my colleague Dr. Henry will talk on the historical reason private smears had not been included in the cervical screening in the public units. The decision was made a number of weeks back, given the delays women had and given the fact that women had used private smear testing services because of the pressures in the public system. A clear communication went out into the system, including with University Hospital Kerry, where I would have spoken to one person who had a concern, to ensure that people did have access to the public colposcopy units, given the delays that had been in place. I will ask Dr. Doherty to talk to the Deputy-----