Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Today, at a quarter to two, I received an e-mail, which I will refer to. To protect the individuals concerned, I will not mention specific villages or names. The e-mail states that the writer's sister-in-law, who lives in a village in County Clare, has recently been diagnosed with breast cancer and subsequently had an MRI scan to determine the stage it was at. Unbelievably, that she was informed by the regional hospital in Limerick this morning that there is no professional radiologist available to read the scan, nor will there be for the foreseeable future. It states that she needs treatment sooner rather than later, but this is not possible without the results of the scan. She is a mother of three children, the oldest of whom is 14, and she is already undergoing treatment for a rare sarcoma. The e-mail states that this latest news came as a major shock, compounded by the fear of not knowing what the future holds for her due to the inadequate and inept health system. The e-mail is signed, and I verified its contents.

The Minister of State can do her piece about the previous Government and I can do my piece about the previous Opposition.

See this speech in context