Counsel says tribunal report should not be sent to DPP

COUNSEL for the hepatitis C tribunal recommended yesterday that the chairman's report should not be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions. Mr James Nugent SC said it would "not be appropriate for the tribunal, particularly one headed by a judicial figure, to make any recommendations to the DPP", as this could be seen as "pressure on him to exercise what his statutory function is".

Mr Nugent said that as a matter of law it was not for a tribunal to make any such recommendations. He said the report would be submitted to the Oireachtas, whereupon it would be in the public domain, and the DPP would then have an opportunity to assess it.

Supporting Mr Nugent's view, Mr Frank Clarke SC, counsel for the public interest, said that while the courts had in the past referred papers to the DPP, this was in circumstances where information was being brought to the attention of the authorities.

He did not think that applied in this instance and he felt that the submission of the chairman's report to the DPP might be construed as "inferring a criminal act", which could be prejudicial to possible future proceedings. An accused person could argue "the entire tribunal is against me" and that as such, it was not possible to get a fair trial.

Mr Bernard Grogan, for Transfusion Positive and Patient X, said his clients did not seek that any action should be taken other than that "the people found culpable should no longer be employed in transfusion medicine".

Submitting other recommendations, Mr Nugent suggested that a "consumers' council" be set up on which regular users of blood and blood products would be "strongly represented". Users should also be represented on the board of the Blood Transfusion Service Board. It should be a "statutory duty" that all adverse reactions be reported in writing to the National Drugs Advisory Board (NDAB), and a register of reactions should be kept by the health boards and the NDAB.

A procedure should also be put in place to govern the withdrawal of blood and blood products, and the Department of Health should collate all information on hepatitis C, and its treatment, for circulation to the medical profession generally.

Mr Clarke said the regulations governing the reporting of adverse reactions should be "strengthened".

Echoing this recommendation, Mr Patrick Hanratty, counsel for the NDAB, said that the Government should take whatever steps were necessary "as a matter of urgency" to enable the NDAB to fulfil the regulations.