Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The point is that arguably the system did have time to prepare and did not respond initially as it should have to the Vicky Phelan case. That is why we have had these panicked, rushed measures that have not been properly thought through. There are 7,000 women waiting for a callback. That is an appalling number. Proper thought did not go into what type of helpline should be established and whether it would be a phoneline or a genuine resource that was resourced as such. A more primary-care focused response should have been developed.

On the free smear test, presumably there will be a fee for every general practitioner, GP, in respect of every woman who comes back. However, first of all we are looking to get the quality assurance right and restore confidence in that. It needs to be thought through. Women at a higher risk should have been targeted first, working with primary care and their consultants, because there are different categories and some are more high risk than others. There is an urgent need to focus on that aspect of it.

A redress scheme was announced last week and no one has an idea what it means. Initially, it gave the impression that everyone whose results were misread would get redress. During the weekend, there were newspaper reports that it would be for anyone who was not told. It seems as though things are being made up as they go along.

I want to hear more from the Taoiseach about the logistics of smear tests from every GP. Will the Taoiseach indicate what is envisaged by the Government on this?

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