THE Government had a majority of 12 in a vote on the hepatitis C controversy. A motion commending its decision to set up a tribunal of inquiry and endorsing, actions taken to protect the blood supply and compensate victims who contracted hepatitis from" blood products supplied by the National Blood Transfusion Service was carried by 70 to 58.

The vote followed a debate in private members time during which the Progressive Democrats leader, Ms Mary Harney, called on the Minister for Health to answer four questions. When, she asked, did the Minister know that the BTSB had on its files evidence that donor X in 1976 had infective hepatitis? Why did he tell the Dail that was not new information? Why did he insist that it was stated in the expert group's report? Why did he not refer all the files to the Director of Public Prosecutions?

Ms Harney offered the Minister part of her speaking time to answer the questions, but the Minister, Mr Noonan, told her to put down Dail questions.

Ms Harney said she had already put down those questions but the Minister had no answers.

Exchanges continued across the floor, with Ms Harney repeating her offer of speaking time. When Mr Noonan did not reply, Ms Harney said she would put down the questions again, but she was dubious about the Minister's willingness to reply. "We have had the measured truth that tells the harsher lie." People could draw their own conclusions if the Minister continued to reply with that kind of "truth".

Mrs Brigid McCole had died after a "David and Goliath" battle against the State. "Her aim was to find out the truth, to establish what were the circumstances which led to her being infected with hepatitis C through a contaminated anti D blood product. She could have gone to the compensation tribunal set up by Minister Noonan. But this no fault forum could not provide her with the answers to her questions."

The State's further admission of liability and the out of court settlement reached with Mrs McCole was only part of the story. Why had the State, the Attorney General and the BTSB at every opportunity obstructed he case, taken by Mrs McCole?

Why was the Minister confining the terms of reference of the tribunal of inquiry to the contamination of blood supplies? "In other words, why are you only prepared, to deal with the medical scandal and not the political scandal?"

A cover up was continuing despite the announcement of a judicial inquiry, the Fianna Fail spokeswoman on, health, Mrs Maire Geoghegan Quinn, claimed.

The State was no more listening to the victims of this "scandal" now than it was before Brigid McCole died. The State, the BTSB and the National Drugs Advisory Board (NDAB) were still obstructding cases.

"The Attorney General is still failing to file defences so as to delay cases. Early trials, as is clear in an upcoming case, are still being opposed. Liability is still not beings conceded without a fight and aggravated damages will not be awarded if the State and the BTSB have their way."

"Mrs Geoghegan Quinn was speaking during the resumed debate on the PD private members motion condemning the Minister Mr Noonan, for his "failure" to accept political responsibility in the matter.

She said it was imperative that the scheme of compensation be stood down while the judicial inquiry was proceeding. "The goal posts have moved and there should be no more play until all the facts are established. No further awards should be made until there is an outcome on the liability issue."

Defending Mr Noonan, the Minister of State for the Environment, Ms Liz McManus, said he shad been subjected to "a particularly nasty and unfair campaign of vilification by members of the opposition." She believed that from the moment he took office, and particularly from the point at which he received the report of the expert group on the BTSB, the Minister had acted properly.

"His principal priorities were medical care and adequate compensation for those who had been infected measures to ensure that such a scandal could never happen again and steps to restore confidence in the blood transfusion system which is required to provide some 3,000 donations each week to meet the demands of our hospital system."

Mr Alan Shatter (FG, Dublin South) said the Minister must be praised for acting quickly to ensure the integrity of the blood supply and for setting up the compensation tribunal.

If a manufacturer of sweets put a product on supermarket shelves which disastrously affected the health of over 1,400 people and caused the death of one person there would have been an immediate Garda investigation. If a decision had been taken to have no Garda investigation in this instance because of the need to allow the expert group under Ms Miriam Hederman O'Brien to report, an investigation should have begun immediately afterwards.

"It now seems that until very recently the Garda have not in any way been involved in this matter and last week the DPP publicly stated that no papers were ever furnished to him that enabled him to consider the bringing of a prosecution."

The new tribunal should not prevent the fullest possible Garda investigation taking place and a file being sent to the DPP. "If, following such investigation and consideration of the papers by the DPP, a conclusion is drawn that no offence has been committed that is known under Irish law, urgent steps should be taken to introduce new legislation."