Elisha McCallion (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I begin by again welcoming the Minister to the Chamber. It has not gone unnoticed that this is the second time he has been in the House in a matter of weeks. We should all acknowledge and appreciate that given that this is an extremely difficult time and also the large amount of work in which he is involved.I also thank Senators Norris, Boyhan and Craughwell for bringing forward this Bill. It is most welcome and Sinn Féin looks forward to supporting its passage through both Houses of the Oireachtas. I welcome the fact that the Bill will put the national screening advisory committee onto a statutory footing. I note that the committee has been set up and has already met on two occasions and I look forward to reading the full minutes of the second meeting. It appears from initial reports that recommendations are to be made to the HSE to add adenosine deaminase deficiency, ADA and severe combined immunodeficiency, SCID to screenings of newborns, which I welcome.

I particularly welcome section 3 of the Bill as it relates to the requirements of the committee to report on the expansion of conditions tested for by the national newborn blood spot screening programme, NNBSP and follow-up requirements thereafter. The expansion of the NNBSP, known to us mammies and daddies as the heel prick test, to include much more testing is long overdue. As we have heard from many previous debates, Ireland is way behind when it comes to the heel prick test and what we are actually testing for with it. We currently only screen for eight conditions but other European countries like Italy, which is the model of best practice, are screening for up to 40 conditions. It is to be hoped that the fact that the committee is required to report back on this specific issue on an annual basis will encourage progress in the expansion of this particular screening process.

It is a matter of great concern that many screening programmes in Ireland are failing and falling behind. Before the outbreak of Covid-19, we had the awful and tragic shambles of the cervical smear scandal. As everyone knows more than 200 women were directly affected by the failures highlighted in the Scally report. These failures led to the misreading of hundreds of cervical smear tests which led, unfortunately, to many women developing cervical cancer and some have since died. Acknowledgement is not enough, however. The Scally report was obviously a good start but it is not enough and its recommendations must be followed through. I ask that consideration be given to the repatriation of the screening samples in order that the work can be done here at home, with the HSE having control and oversight. The Government must step up its efforts in respect of the national screening laboratory immediately. We must have an attitude of zero tolerance for misdiagnosis of cancer across the board. The failure to provide properly functioning screening leads to more complex problems. I acknowledge that almost all previous speakers referred to the fact that in almost every situation, prevention is better than the cure. Early detection saves lives and it saves money in the long run.

We now have a very worrying situation with regard to cancer screening services. Services such as BreastCheck, CervicalCheck and BowelScreen have been suspended since 27 March. Some have resumed but others are still delayed. Fewer than 100,000 people have been screened in the first half of this year, compared to 500,000 in all of 2019. The immediate impact is that thousands of people are experiencing symptoms but have not been tested. As the Minister can appreciate, this is causing enormous anxiety. It has led to waiting lists bursting at the seams. Return to service is very much dependent on capacity and location. These screening services must resume fully in a safe and appropriate manner. I hope that this issue will be considered by the committee at its next meeting.

I reiterate Sinn Féin's support for this Bill and again thank Senators Norris, Boyhan and Craughwell for leading the way by proposing to put the committee on a statutory footing. The work on screening for genetic disorders in newborns did not go unnoticed by my party. My party colleagues, Deputy John Brady and former Senator Máire Devine were actively engaged with Mr. Les Martin and his family. Many Members have spoken today of their appreciation of the Martin family and their pursuit of the change we are discussing today, despite their own difficulties. We owe a debt of gratitude to Mr. Les Martin and his family for ensuring that this important work continues.I look forward to working with the Minister and with other colleagues in the Chamber in the coming weeks and months on everything we have talked about today. I appreciate that there is an amendment to today's Order of Business and I am happy to reflect with Senator Norris on that. There are some pressing issues that, unfortunately, we cannot wait for a year to hear back on, including screening across the board. I look forward to the Minister's response.