Marie Sherlock (Labour) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. The Labour Party will be supporting this legislation, as we did in the Dáil. It is a technical amendment to the 2019 Bill to extend the existence of the tribunal. This in itself is unobjectionable. We will not be found wanting in ensuring those who want to go through the tribunal can do so.

I must express frustration, however, as have others, that this Bill contains no attempt and makes no effort to resolve the reasons so few women have come forward. It almost seeks to extend in the hope that more claims will arise. As my colleague, Deputy Alan Kelly, has repeatedly said, as we understand it at this point, only five women are currently making claims. This small number should surely be ringing an alarm bell when we contrast that with the 160 active cases that were going through the courts as of May of this year.

There is, therefore, a very real question as to why the Government has not engaged with or listened to the very real concerns of those women who have decided not to go down the tribunal route, and why the 221+ group could not advise its members to make claims through the tribunal.

A number of key issues remain unresolved in this Bill. We have heard assurances so many times that this process would be non-adversarial. Of course, that has not come to pass. Ms Lorraine Walsh has repeatedly been seeking assurances with regard to those who suffer recurrence of their cancer, which the Minister mentioned in his contribution. It is my understanding that in the hepatitis C tribunal, in the event of recurrences of hepatitis C people could go back and had a right to return to the tribunal if their health deteriorated. That avenue has not been opened up to women in the context of the CervicalCheck tribunal, however.

Women wanted reassurances that they would not be statute barred. They were asked to have faith in the system. It is very hard to have faith in a system that let them down in the first instance. Of course, we have a very real failure to take on board and respond to the Chief Justice's decision following the Ruth Morrissey judgment. There was a failure to amend the Civil Liability (Amendment) Act so that no woman has to choose between taking a case herself or waiting until after she passes away.

I wish to pay tribute, as have others, to the enormous courage and fearlessness of the women and men behind the 221+ group and the others who have stepped forward. Behind those faces, obviously, are enormous personal challenges, while they are sick and having to fight this campaign to get the recognition and justice they deserve.

I really believe it is incumbent on the Government now to respond the Chief Justice's comments and that decision to amend the Civil Liability (Amendment) Act so that no woman has to choose. We need the Minister to come back in the next term and remedy these issues so many of us have spoken about today. We are happy to support this Bill to extend the tribunal but ultimately, the tribunal will fail if it does not address the issues that have been set out.