Marc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have a couple of quick points. I thought there would be questions but that will not be the case. The Minister can take them as questions and come back to the House later. Why is the State not paying the €8,500 every three weeks for Vicky Phelan's treatment? She is doing that out of her own pocket or the goodwill of friends and family through a GoFundMe page. We need to do something about that. My second question relates to GP surgeries. I know from a family involved in that area that surgeries are being inundated with recheck requests. If somebody had a smear test this morning, yesterday or last week, is it going to the same laboratory in America? If it is and it was me, I would be a bit apprehensive. The problem is clearly with the laboratories. Before we even start the investigation, we know that a good proportion of the problem lies there. How can we give people confidence? I am of the view that the Minister needs to make a statement to the effect that one third of the activity is in the Coombe and the other two thirds are elsewhere. Are tests still being sent to the same laboratory with which there was a problem?

I heard a statement from the State Claims Agency on "Morning Ireland" earlier with which I fundamentally disagree because it is not borne out by the facts. The agency was referring to the level of compassion shown to patients and that it is fully understanding of this in the context in which legal fees are pursued. That is nonsense. We all know that the State Claims Agency's default position is to throw people under the bus, to use taxpayers' money and to throw good money after bad. That is borne out in media reports from earlier today which indicate that a child born in 2009 has been awarded a settlement of €9 million. How many years has the family involved had to suffer in order to obtain that settlement? This is nothing new. We need different protocols for how we approach claims from the point of view of the State, whether in the context of a health issue or otherwise. While the State cannot be an easy target, we cannot throw good money after bad just because we blindly say that the State is right. There is no compassion in doing so and that is why I do not agree with the statement this morning.

I do not care who was Minister with responsibility for health in 2000 or who has served in that capacity in between. We all know there were four or five from different parties. Irrespective of what is going to happen at a prospective inquiry, I ask that an examination be carried out in respect of all emails relating to this matter - from each Minister to each Minister and relating to CervicalCheck - in order that we might discover who knew what and when. I have no interest in going up the hill in two weeks' time against a former Minister or the current incumbent because certain issues may come to light. Let us have that matter examined now, get the information out there and see where we stand.

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