Lottery money was used to establish a trust for haemophiliacs, the Lindsay Tribunal has heard. The Tribunal was told that the Fianna Fáil-Progressive Democrat coalition in 1989 used the lottery cash rather than Exchequer funds to establish the trust, which was set up for haemophiliacs who had contracted HIV through contaminated blood products.
The revelation came out during the cross-examination of the Chairman of the Irish Haemophilia Society, Brian O'Mahony, who remarked: "Thank God for the National Lottery." Mr O'Mahony said that the fund "worked remarkably well".
It was established only after the previous minority Fianna Fáil administration called an election rather than implement an Opposition motion calling for £400,000 to be given to haemophiliacs.
It is the second time the Tribunal has heard of National Lottery money being deployed to give assistance to haemophiliacs who were HIV positive. It was established last year that lottery money was used to fund extra social workers at St James' Hospital in Dublin to help counselling those infected.
When this was pointed out to a witness whose husband had been infected with hepatitis C from blood products, she remarked: "That's about the size of it - lottery money! When the haemophilia community was being devastated."
A total of 76 haemophiliacs have died so far as a result of being infected with hepatitis C and HIV from contaminated blood products most of which were imported. The Tribunal has now adjourned for a week.
