Chris Andrews (Dublin South East, Fianna Fail)

I am pleased to have an opportunity to speak on this matter. Last Tuesday I met with members of the Irish Thalidomide Association who were in Leinster House to brief the Joint Committee on Health and Children on their situation. Their story is one of the most difficult and tragic I have come across, and is all the more upsetting because it could have been prevented. We can get bogged down in this House with legalities, politics, reports and so on and tend to forget about the individual stories. At the meeting Ms Maggie Woods gave a harrowing account of her life story which was upsetting to hear. It put the issue in context.

There are 32 acknowledged thalidomide survivors in the State, the children of women who unwittingly took the prescribed morning sickness medication with no realisation of the hugely damaging effect it would have on their unborn children. This drug was marketed between 1958 and 1961 and was withdrawn from use after it was linked to birth deformities. Thalidomide causes severe foetal damage by preventing the growth of new blood vessels at critical periods in the baby's development. The most obvious effects are absent or foreshortened limbs but children's vision and hearing were also affected while others sustained damage to internal organs. Many babies did not survive the pregnancy and many more died in infancy.

The 32 survivors are brave people who have managed to live extraordinary lives. They are remarkably well adjusted despite the difficulties they have encountered in their lives. They have managed to overcome those difficulties without any of the sense of bitterness and anger one might expect. They are well adjusted and surprisingly so given their experiences.

A lump sum was paid decades ago to the parents of survivors. However, the amount was small and it was not believed thalidomide victims would live long. Special assistance may be required to allow these survivors to continue to live as independently as possible. There is an onus on the State to provide monetary compensation to ensure the needs of these people are met.

Earlier last month the Northern Ireland Minister for Health, Mr. McGimpsey, announced a £1.1 million compensation package for survivors in Northern Ireland of thalidomide, of which there are 18. This followed on from the Britain's announcement of a compensation fund of £20 million for its 466 thalidomide survivors. I believe the Government has a responsibility to provide for our survivors.

Following two years of campaigning and almost 50 years of distress there has been no progress in regard to the review of the 1975 thalidomide agreement called for by the ITA. On Tuesday, the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children resolved to contact the Minister to request that they be included in the State claims agency report. The ITA is requesting an acknowledgment of the wrong done - it was wrong for this drug to be licensed by the State - an apology for survivors and the families of those who did not survive, and disclosure of documents. The Department of Health and Children has refused to grant voluntary disclosure of documents in all Departments pertaining to this tragedy, despite the passing of 50 years. The ITA is also requesting a fair and equitable compensation package, including a health care package that properly addresses the unique needs of this group to ensure they can maintain the level of deteriorating health they continue to experience and where possible to lead independent lives.

I ask that fairness and justice be applied to this particular group and that this matter be given full attention.

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