Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for answering in such great detail. It is shocking to see the figure of how many people die yearly from smoking. I am concerned, as I have seen many children smoking on their way home from primary school. The Minister of State has given me some figures with which to work. For example, approximately 21% of pregnant women smoke.

It is a matter of education, which begins at home. If children see their parents smoking while women are pregnant, they will reflect that behaviour as they grow up. The Minister of State is correct in that certain social backgrounds lead to younger smoking, for whatever reasons.

Will the Minister of State consider making a medical intervention such as is found in other European countries, for example, England, where nicotine patches are made freely available to pregnant women as a matter of course? This could be the first step in making a difference in the lives of a mother and her unborn baby. Giving the unborn a chance to survive when a mother smokes would be the legacy of the Minister for Health and the Government.

I thank the Minister of State for his reply and I will revert to him on some of those figures.

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