Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am reminded of the old advertisements for Daz and Surf, but I will leave that where it is.

I am sure the Taoiseach will join me in expressing shock and frustration at the reports in the media today which suggest that a large number of previously missed abnormalities have been uncovered in the course of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists' review the results of smear tests carried out under the CervicalCheck programme over a period of ten years. Notwithstanding the limitations of a review which is not blind, these reports are very worrying. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists was supposed to report on this over a year ago, as the Taoiseach will be aware. However, this review has been dogged by difficulties and delays and it is only today that any light has been shed on what was uncovered but even today, we do not have the full picture. The initial reports in The Irish Timesthis morning are quite worrying in that sources have indicated that "a large number" of previously missed abnormalities have been uncovered during the review. A large number, possibly hundreds, have been uncovered but we do not know the details as yet. If these sources are to be believed, it is possible that a significant number of women screened under the CervicalCheck programme were told that they did not need follow-up smear tests but later developed cancer. One such woman is Fiona Prendergast, whose case has been covered in the media previously. I am sure it is very difficult for her widower, children, family and friends to read this news today.

They have been advised of the result and they are coming to terms with it, but leaks like this do not help to give them any comfort. On the day the Taoiseach issued an apology in this Chamber, they received a letter about Fiona, who sadly died in 2015, telling them that had a referral to colposcopy been made in 2009, it is likely the cancer diagnosed in 2014 would have been prevented.

I want the Taoiseach to know they are watching today, just as they watched his apology last month. As public representatives, we have a duty to uncover the truth about what went wrong with the CervicalCheck programme, but we also have a duty to ensure confidence is maintained in public health services such as the current cervical screening programme. To do that, we need to be briefed on this report as a matter of urgency. It is important for the women and their families that this report is published in full without delay.

Will the Taoiseach request that the Minister for Health publishes this report today and briefs the Opposition on its contents? Will the Taoiseach take immediate steps to ensure that he, the Government and the screening service address the need to restore confidence in the screening programme? Women using this service know, and I know, that no screening programme is perfect but they deserve to have confidence in that service. Will the Taoiseach join me in calling for the leaking of sections of this report and the drip-feeding of this important information into the public domain to stop immediately? It is not fair to these families to have this information drip-fed into the media. We have had numerous apologies and assurances this would not happen again and here we are and it has happened again.

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