A HIGH Court judge will be appointed next week as the sole member of the judicial inquiry into the hepatitis C infection issue.
Five days after the death of Ms Brigid Ellen McCole and under intense political pressure to take action over the controversy, the Minister for Health yesterday dropped his opposition to such an investigation and announced a tribunal of inquiry into all issues of doubt and uncertainty surrounding the infection of people by the Anti-D vaccine administered by the Blood Transfusion Services Board (BTSB).
The decision was made at yesterday's Cabinet meeting and made public shortly after the BTSB publicly apologised in the High Court to Ms McCole's family. The Dail and Seanad will next week be asked to approve the terms of reference of the inquiry, which will have the authority to summon witnesses and to order the discovery of relevant documents. "This is a matter of urgent public importance and it would be my hope that the tribunal will be able to conclude its deliberations at the earliest possible date," Mr Noonan said.
He denied that a decision had already been made to ask Judge Catherine McGuinness to act as chairwoman of the inquiry.
The establishment of the inquiry would not affect future compensation claims pursued through the courts by people infected by the hepatitis C virus, Mr Noonan said.
He dismissed some Opposition suggestions that the compensation tribunal be suspended, saying that it will continue indefinitely as an alternative to court proceedings for those seeking damages.
Asked why he had decided to drop his former stance and proceed to establish the much sought after inquiry, Mr Noonan said he had believed that the truth about the infection would emerge in the High Court ease taken by Ms McCole. Unfortunately, she had died and he did not know when such proceedings, "if ever", will come before the courts.
"I have no other way to establish the truth other than by this tribunal .. . I though we would have been able to get at the truth by a combination of the Miriam Hederman O'Brien report (Expert Group) and the High Court," he said.
Mr Noonan denied that he had directed the BTSB to admit liability in the McCole case. It was not true, either, that the Labour Party had pressurised him into taking action, though he and the Tanaiste, Mr Spring, were deeply concerned that the BTSB had made a lodgement of £175,000 in the High Court last May, he said. Ms McCole eventually settled for that amount just before her death.
Amending a Dail motion from the Progressive Democrats last night which condemned his handling of the controversy, the Minister announced his intention to move a motion in both Houses of the Oireaehtas next week establishing the tribunal.
His announcement was welcomed by Positive Action, the group representing about 809 women infected by the hepatitis C virus. It hoped the Minister would meet members before the terms of reference were finalised.
It was unclear last night whether the tribunal of inquiry would extend to those people infected by blood transfusions. A spokesman for Transfusion Positive, which represents around 150 people, said the group would insist on having the remit extended if the inquiry related only to women infected by Anti-D. A spokesman for the Department of Health said the "detailed terms of reference and membership of the tribunal will be finalised within the next week."