Martin Conway (Fine Gael)
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I thank our guests. It has been quite an informative morning. As others have said, the events over the weekend have crystalised the importance of this issue. Following on from the previous contribution, it would be a very good start if every teacher in the country were trained in CPR. I agree that CPR needs to be an obligatory part of the curriculum and taught in the workplace and that top-ups should continue. Do the witnesses have a view on the Health and Safety Authority having a role in this?

Defibrillators should be commonplace in workplaces. People should be trained in their use. They should be at the centre of any kind of health and safety plan or programme in workplaces. What engagements have the witnesses had with the Health and Safety Authority in this regard? I missed the very start of the meeting because I had another engagement, so maybe this question has been answered. Do the witnesses know how many defibrillators in the country are working? What is the percentage of defibrillators that are broken, have not been updated or have not been serviced? That has to be a very serious situation. A defibrillator might be used only very rarely but it is critical that they are all working. The witnesses might give us an idea of those percentages.

Other members, including Deputy Cullinane, have spoken about the strategy. It is appalling to think the Department of Health has not been monitoring the strategy or has not really taken it seriously. This is a serious issue. I believe that the engagement with the committee this morning will result in our making contact with or engaging with the Department. We will no doubt have the HSE, the Department officials and the Minister before us in due course and we can put this issue to them then.

Those are a couple of my observations. Any of the witnesses may respond to them; I do not mind who.