Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Acting Chairperson for the opportunity to speak on this very sad saga and on the desperate treatment of so many of our fine women. I think of poor Emma Mhic Mhathúna, who lived in Dingle in our county for a while. My sympathy goes out to her family and to the families of all the other women who lost their lives because of incorrect diagnoses. Emma was a witty and charming woman who fought as hard as she could up to the very end. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and with the families of all the other women.

The worst part of this whole saga, in addition to the incorrect diagnoses, is the length of time it took for women and their families to be informed that incorrect diagnoses had been made. We all know that time is crucial with regard to cancer diagnoses. Outcomes are very different where there is delay. People should be brought to task. Whether it was Dr. Tony Holohan or someone else who was responsible for the delay, there are certainly questions to be answered because time is so important. More than 200 people got the wrong results and there was a great delay in informing many of them. We applaud Vicky Phelan for the fight she has put up on her own behalf and on behalf of all of the women who were affected.

Another thing is happening and has happened. More people are dying as a result of another delay, one which has continued since the Covid pandemic began. Many people with other serious issues are affected, including a man I know whose wife told me he has just four months to live. He was supposed to be seen after his first round of treatment in January of this year. This was delayed and put back from month to month. It was only last month, in June, that he was seen. It had spread all over him. He has a young family and a young wife. I know there are miracles but it is unlikely that he will survive. I am very sorry for him. There are many others suffering such delays. We know that Covid is very serious and had to be dealt with but people with other medical problems should not have had their treatment held up as it has been, and is being, held up. I have asked the Government before to ensure that does not happen anymore. It needs to get its house in order because it is not in order. People from Kerry are facing delays in being seen.

I cannot understand why the Government is cutting the time so tight in extending the deadline to, possibly, 26 July 2022. Why can it not be extended to sometime in 2024 or 2025? Some women may live longer and come forward later. I ask the Government to give them more time. Why is it trying to cut the time? It is not a grant for which farmers are applying. It is a serious matter and these women are entitled to get retribution, to be shown respect and to be treated properly in light of the wrongs that have been done to them. I cannot see why it should be limited to July 2022. While I welcome its extension to 26 July 2022, I ask the Government to extend it for a couple of years beyond that to give women a chance to come forward. This is a desperate scenario. People were given the wrong information. We all trust medical advice and are taught to respect it but the wrong advice was given and someone should have to explain why and why it took so long - three or four years - to inform the women involved. That is where the desperate wrong was done. I ask the Government to ensure all of these women are treated fairly because they have not been treated fairly up to this point.

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