Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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170. To ask the Minister for Health if she intends to establish a national biobank office and introduce primary biobanking legislation, as recommended by the Irish Health Research Forum in 2023; if so, the timeline she is working towards; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50613/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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Under the current legal framework for health research in Ireland, it is already required that appropriate consent is gathered upon collection or reuse of bio-samples and that researchers obtain ethics approval prior to undertaking any health research. As such there are institutional supports in place in academic and clinical settings to ensure appropriate use of bio-samples.

Officials in my Department are continuing to work with colleagues in the Health Research Board, the HSE, and the wider health research community, to examine biobanking in Ireland and assess the need for any national legislation or policy which can support the health research community and our national priorities across the health research agenda. Officials from my Department are also regular contributors to the Health Research Forum, and these engagements I hope will continue to be valuable in pursuing our goals and objectives in this regard.