Mr. Francie Molloy:

I thank the witnesses for their presentation. It is very enlightening in the context of all the work that is going on. It is important that this work gets done in different ways. One of the points that came up related to cancer research and one of the charities and funding bodies that, over the years, has been collecting and trying to support cancer research. How much effect does that have? How much information can people get in order that they might discover the benefits of that research and how it is bringing about new treatments for the future? What effect does that have in the context of cancer research?

The other issue relates to how people speculate on the causes of cancer. Is what we are eating or what we are drinking that causes cancer? Why do we have higher rates of cancer now than was the case in the past? That is a concern people have. How does Ireland rate in terms of cancer? Usually, we look at the position North and South for the number of cases of cancer. What is the comparison? Are they similar, or do different issues come into that?

Mr. McCormick spoke about the work he has done. Holy Trinity is going well at the football, as are the various lines within it. It is good to see someone who was a teacher and who worked in the sciences is now coming back in a different role. On the number of people needed to carry out research, is it possible to retrain people who have medical or teaching experience or experience in the sciences? Is it possible to bring those people back in later years to do research for the future? The retraining and recycling of people into different roles is important. This is particularly important as it is an older people's illness, and they have more of an interest in it. I have had type 2 diabetes for the past 18 or 20 years. Living with diabetes is something similar in terms of how one treats it and keeps going. It is important to look at how we can get more people involved on a voluntary basis, or working on that research, in order that it is not tying down the specialists or professors. More working-class people should be involved in that research. I thank the witnesses for the work they are doing. I hope there was nothing in any way derogatory in my questions.