Margaret Murphy O'Mahony (Cork South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

In the interests of time, I will group my few questions together. I am the first female Deputy ever elected in Cork South-West. I am the only female Oireachtas Member from County Cork.

I stand before the Minister this morning to say how sad and let down I feel on behalf of the women of Ireland at the way the CervicalCheck saga has played out. I am tight for time but I must say how awful it is. I acknowledge that the Minister knows of the pain and worry of women who continue to wait for results but I want to get it across to him how awful it is.

What is the Minister going to do to restore confidence? It is essential that the women of Ireland go ahead with this and any other screening process that is available. What will the Minister do to restore confidence in health checks in general and CervicalCheck in particular? Was the Minister advised not to go ahead with the free or out-of-schedule smear tests? How can the Minister stand over the fact that if one pays for a result, one can get it faster than if one does not? That is still the case. Can poor people not be sick? Why do poor people have to wait for a result? There are so many calls on people's money now. Why must they wait for a result and worry for the duration of the wait while people with a few bob for results can get them faster? How can the Minister stand over that?

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