Emer Currie (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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184. To ask the Minister for Health the 2025 funding allocation for the National Genetics and Genomics Office on a full-year basis; the 2025 funding allocation for the National Strategy for Accelerating Genetic and Genomic Medicine in Ireland 2022 on a full-year basis; the funding required to implement the strategy in full; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34580/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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The National Genetics and Genomics Office (NGGO) was established in 2023 to implement the National Strategy for Accelerating Genetic and Genomic Medicine in Ireland. In 2023, an initial allocation of €2.7 million was provided to support the Strategy's initial implementation, which included the establishment of the National Office and the recruitment of key front-line staff. The total budget for Genetics and Genomics for 2025 is €4,572,280, which includes pay and non-pay costs.

Ongoing implementation of the strategy involves a comprehensive and evolving transformation of services, encompassing workforce development, infrastructure enhancements, the establishment of a National Genomic Processing Service, and ongoing research integration.

The dynamic nature of genomic medicine, coupled with the phased implementation approach of the strategy, makes it difficult to provide a definitive total cost for full implementation of the strategy. Full implementation will require sustained, substantial investment over several years, with funding needs likely to be continuously assessed and refined as new services are rolled out and capabilities expanded.