Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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114. To ask the Taoiseach the number of persons in his Department, both at official and other levels, who received the Scally report before it was leaked to the media on 11 September 2018 and before the victims had received a briefing on same; and his plans to investigate the leak. [37936/18]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The leaking of some information from the Scally Report before the women and families most affected could be briefed was wrong. The report concerned a very sensitive issue touching on the lives of women, some of whom are very ill, and of families, some of whom are grieving a devastating bereavement.

The leaking of this information was done without any regard to the interests of the families and the women concerned and frustrated the plans that had been put in place to have Dr. Scally brief the women and families and patients’ representatives at the same time as the Cabinet meeting and ahead of the publication of the report.

The matter is being investigated by a senior official who did not receive a copy of the report in advance of its publication, and I do not wish to pre-empt the investigation by attempting at this stage to answer questions which will have to be considered as part of that investigation.