DISBAND THE HSE'

 Activist's mum & dad hit out at Govt's actions | Pair's fury at moves over cervical screening

- SYLVIA POWNALL

VICKY Phelan's heartbroken parents have called for the HSE to be disbanded claiming it has failed the women of Ireland.

In their first interview since her death last November, John and Gaby Kelly hit out at the Government for its lack of progress on cervical screening.

Brave Vicky defied a gagging order to lift the lid on the Cervical Check scandal which saw 221 women get wrong smear test results. At least 20 of them have died.

A National Cervical Screening Lab was set up at a cost of €20million last December - but operations stalled within weeks and all smear slides are now sent abroad.

John told the Irish Sunday Mirror: "To be honest I wouldn't have expected anything else from the HSE or this Government.

"They have dropped to a new low disrespecting those who have departed like Vicky, and others who fought so hard to get change on this." Vicky was given a false negative cervical smear test result in 2011, then diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2014.

She took the State to court and settled a €2.5m High Court action in 2018 but refused to stay quiet and exposed the Cervical Check scandal.

COMPENSATION

A tribunal was set up in March 2021 to provide fast-track compensation without having to go to court, but was heavily criticised by campaigners including Vicky.

As of August 2023 just 26 claims had been lodged with the CervicalCheck tribunal - while 385 claims have been taken through the courts.

Speaking from the family home in Mooncoin, Co Kilkenny, Mr Kelly said: "There have been so many unnecessary deaths.

"Gaby and myself lost the most beautiful, precious, loving and caring daughter anyone could imagine.

"Don't be making little of people, dragging them through the court. I mean they're still at it.

"Ruth Morrissey's case took 55 days, it went on for two days after she died.