I will do my best not to be provocative. With regard to the national plan for rare diseases and the concerns raised therein about access to life-saving drugs, will the health information patient safety legislation contain a provision to address concerns raised in a report launched in 2014 by former Minister for Health James Reilly? When will Members have an opportunity to scrutinise the legislation?

I understand that the pre-legislative phase of the Bill will be taken shortly. I am not in a position to confirm exactly whether it will deal with that issue. The pre-legislative scrutiny will afford an opportunity for the committee to assess the adequacy of the legislation and whether such an issue can be addressed in that legislation.

Will the Minister please define "shortly"?

It will be down to the committees to order their business, but I understand it is available to do that.