Mary Moran (Labour) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday was a small step, but none the less an important one, for survivors of symphysiotomy, with the announcement of the appointment of Judge Yvonne Murphy to supervise the compensation scheme. While I was disappointed that yet again the Walsh report is not forthcoming and will not be published until another report has been commissioned, I believe this is a positive step. I understand that under the terms of reference the judge will have six weeks to liaise with all of the women and the insurance parties and report back to the Cabinet. I hope we will have a speedy response from the Government to bring closure to the dreadful ordeal these courageous women have suffered for many years. As we are aware, time is not on the side of the women. I hope that yesterday’s announcement will signal the beginning of the end of a very long journey for these courageous women.

What happened to Marie Fleming was reported yesterday and it was very courageous of the family to express what happened. It was dreadful and should not have happened. We can all say we inherited the difficulties in regard to medical cards and each side can blame the other. However, we must remember the people who have been refused medical cards. These people come to us for help every day. People in wheelchairs and who are seriously ill go through this ordeal. Discretionary medical cards should be based on the long-term or terminal illness or on the disability of the person involved, rather than on the family income.