Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his frank response. I am not a doctor either but it has been well documented that the side effects of Lariam are very advanced and adverse. We know of many other countries that have stopped prescribing this anti-malarial drug. We also know that many countries have apologised to their defence forces for having prescribed it. What solace or guarantees will the Defence Forces get from this process? If Lariam is a cheap version of an anti-malarial drug for soldiers, will officers be prescribed a better brand? We mentioned in the debate on the motion on the Defence Forces in the House yesterday that the use of this drug causes major stress within in the family unit among the wives and partners of the members of the Defence Forces. We do not have to be medical experts to know that Lariam is not a good product. We certainly should not be prescribing it to the members of our Defence Forces. Would it be possible for us to have access to those reports or would Deputy Ó Snodaigh be entitled to have sight of them?

See this speech in context