From top: Fianna Fail leader Mícheál Martin; Taoiseach Leo Varadkar; FFl TD Stephen Donnelly at an Oireachtas health committee meeting this morning; a tweet from Health Minister Simon Harris on April 28 last, offering women free repeat smears 

This afternoon.

In the Dáil during Leaders’ Questions.

Fianna Fáil leader Mícheál Martin raised the submission made by the former clinical director of CervicalCheck Gráinne Flannelly to the Oireachtas health committee – revealed this morning – in which she said she warned the Department of Health against offering free out-of-cycle smear tests to concerned women following the Vicky Phelan case last April.

As the Minister for Health Simon Harris previously stated he didn’t receive any warnings against the decision to offer the extra tests, Ms Flannelly’s submission has led some to claim Mr Harris misled the Dáil.

Fianna Fail TD Stephen Donnelly told the health committee this morning:

“What she [Gráinne Flannelly] says directly contradicts the minister’s position.

“And what she says suggests that the minister has, in fact, misled the Dail.”

Minister Harris has since said today:

“I never received any contrary advice in relation to the provision of free repeat smear tests.

“It is clear that after the decision was made that some in the CervicalCheck programme did express some concerns about the operationalising of it.”

According to Ms Flannelly she was told of the move to offer the tests at lunchtime on April 28, 2018 – while Minister Harris announced the move at 5.13pm that evening on Twitter.

During Leaders’ Questions Mr Martin told Taoiseach Leo Varadkar that Ms Flannelly’s claim “flatly contradicts” that of Minister Harris.

He asked the Taoiseach if he’ll ask the minister to address the Dáil and explain the full sequence of events. He also said the minister’s response to the matter “lacked character”.

Mr Varadkar told Mr Martin that the minister has previously answered questions on the subject and would be happy to do so again.

He then said:

“I think your approach here and your attack here also lacks character. Remember what you said about these people, what you said about the senior people in CervicalCheck on the 1st of May [last year].

“You said that they were cold and calculating. You suggested that they may have been involved in illegality and you suggested that they could have been involved in a conspiracy.

“So perhaps you should reflect on that and if you now hold the views you hold today, you may wish to correct the record and withdraw those remarks that you made about those senior clinicians and senior people in CervicalCheck back on the first of May.

“The reality was that the situation at the time was that there were a lot of women who were really concerned about the accuracy of their smear tests. They were attending their GPs, looking for a repeat smear test.

“They were contacting the helpline looking for a repeat test, there were some doctors calling for repeat smear tests to be allowed. When it was done, patient advocates were calling for it too.

“When it was done, it was welcomed by the Opposition and it was agreed by the IMO. So this wasn’t just a decision made by the Minister for Health. And it was also made with agreement for the Chief Medical Officer.”

Ms Flannelly says she warned that the offer of extra tests would ‘fundamentally undermine the screening programme’. She resigned on the same day the offer was announced.

Last month, Mr Harris told the Dáil that before the decision was made to offer these extra tests, neither he nor his officials received advice against the move.

It’s since emerged almost 80,000 women are now waiting up to 33 weeks for results of their smear tests when the normal waiting time is five to six weeks.

Earlier: Compare And Contrast

‘sup?

This morning.

Irish Rail tweetz:

Anyone lost their dog? We have this little fella in Heuston. He was found on the 08:46 Sallins – Heuston. Help us find the owner.

UPDATE:

This afternoon.

Having the kip.

No harm.

Irish Rail

This morning.

Dublin Dental Hospital.

Minister for Health Simon Harris and Minister for Social Protection Regina Doherty launch Smile agus Slainte, the new National Health Policy.

According to figures obtained by Fianna Fáil TD Stephen Donnelly last month from the Health Service Executive, 84,000 children are awaiting check-ups or treatment in the public system.

*covers mouth*

Sam Boal/RollingNews

Well now, if it isn’t the International Space Station. To wit.

Using precise timing, the Earth-orbiting space platform was photographed in front of a partially lit gibbous Moon last month. The featured image was taken from Palo Alto, California, USA with an exposure time of only 1/667 of a second. In contrast, the duration of the transit of the ISS across the entire Moon was about half a second. A close inspection of this unusually crisp ISS silhouette will reveal the outlines of numerous solar panels and trusses. The bright crater Tycho is visible on the lower left, as well as comparatively rough, light colored terrain known as highlands, and relatively smooth, dark colored areas known as maria.

(Image: Eric Holland)

apod

From top: Paschal Donohoe, then Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, launches the Public Services Card (PSC) in 2016; Oireachtas justice committee, Anna Morgan and Jennifer O’Sullivan, of the Data Protection Commission; and Independents 4 Change TD Clare Daly

This morning.

Members of the Data Protection Commission are appearing before the Oireachtas justice committee which includes Independents 4 Change TDs Mick Wallace and Clare Daly.

In January the Department of Employment and Social Protection refused to release information with regard to the an investigation by the DPC into the legality of the public services card.

The request for the information was made by the the Irish Council for Civil Liberties.

Instead, the DPC confirmed to The Irish Times that the DPC doesn’t intend to publish its report in full.

This morning, the DPC told the committee they will publish final report with the department’s permission.

But the department has previously said it will not publish the report without the DPC’s permission.

In addition, asked if the DPC agrees with Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection Regina saying the Public Services Card doesn’t involve biometric data processing, the DPC representatives said they couldn’t comment.

Lawyer Elizabeth Farries, of the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, has been following this morning’s meeting and has said she’s disappointed with the answers given by the DPC members in response to certain questions.

Elizabeth tweetz:

Previously: ‘A Matter Of Urgent Importance’

CassandraVoices.

The April issue of the online ‘smorgasbord of insightful comment, artistic expression and delightful imagery’ is out now.

What can we expect?

‘Cassandra’ writes:

With the House of Commons descending into postmodern farce, Frank Armstrong examines a spectre the British Establishment fears even more than a calamitous no-deal Brexit.

This month we bring you a new column called ‘Bull Moose’, a monthly bulletin covering the politics and society of the United States.

Professor Ronan McCrea wonders whether Southern Ireland is prepared to accommodate Unionist Culture, with the possibility of Irish Unification on the horizon. Cartoon by Octo.

We continue our coverage of Brazil through Bruna Kadletz, who identifies a ‘Discourse of Pollution’, emanating from Jair Bolsonaro, the ‘Trump of the Tropics’.

Jenny Hauser pays tribute to her recently deceased grandmother, a physicist who left an account of her time living under the Third Reich and behind the Iron Curtain in Germany.

Frank O’Boyle reveals his experiences working in homeless shelter accommodation in Dublin, and explores how outcomes could be improved.

In the next instalment of his memoir, film maker Bob Quinn returns to his early days in RTE, and the amusing characters that inhabited that lost world.

The founder of the Innocence Project in Ireland, David Langwallner poses the question: ‘what is law?, and whether it truly aligns with justice.

Our editorial discusses the Fine Gael government’s denial of habitat to wild birds and feckless artists, among others.

Martin Obst and Giulia Canevari are getting growing, and want to inspire you to do the same.

Our Musician of the Month is Bartholomew Ryan of the Loafing Heroes. Artist of the Month is Hector Castells.

We have fiction from Nance Harding and Stephen Mc Randal, and a poem, BREXIT, by Alex Winter. And No Comment Photography from Francesco Taurisano.

In fairness.

CassandraVoices

St Sylvester’s Infant School, Malahide, County Dublin

A third school in north county Dublin has sent a letter to parents warning of dire consequences if parents vote to change the ethos of the school in an upcoming ballot.

St Sylvester’s in Malahide has told parents that a move away from Catholic patronage would mean that the school would no longer be able to celebrate the role of grandparents in children’s lives…

The leaflet also warns that there will be “no more uniforms” and that this will compromise child safety on school tours as well as leading to “arguments in the morning”.

Good times.

Third Dublin school sends letter warning of consequences over changing patronage (RTÉ)

UPDATE:

Via Educate Together

‘Educate Together is aware of much media comment over a series of letters issued in the Malahide / Portmanock / Kinsealy area in relation to possible reassignment of patronage of some Catholic schools.

Educate Together issued a classification statement on this matter yesterday, which can be accessed here.

However, Educate Together is disappointed that the content of further material published today (above) is grossly misleading and categorically untrue.

Due to a number of issues raised, we can only assume that these statements are directed against Educate Together’s equality-based school model.

It has been alleged that multi-denominational / equality-based schools engage in a number of unsafe and negative practices, such as:

compromising on child safety
having ‘low standards’ of education
not celebrating Christmas and other cultural events
not celebrating the role of grandparents in children’s lives
leading to “uncertainty” in local access to secondary education

None of this is true.

Educate Together is calling on school leaders to be aware of their responsibility to provide parents and the general public with accurate information about other school models, especially when they are implicitly referencing Educate Together.

Educate Together has not been consulted regarding any divestments in Malahide/Portmarnock. The organisation is calling for a forum where all stakeholders can exchange opinions and information.

Or anyone interested in learning about Educate Together’s unique, inclusive and equality-based school ethos, our brand new website www.educatetogether.ie will assist…’

Another Day, Another Clarification (Educate Together)

Tánaiste Simon Coveney

Yikes.

Listen back here

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