State thalidomide apology long overdue, says campaigner

Updated / Monday, 9 Nov 2026 08:52

A spokesperson for the Irish Thalidomide Association has said a State apology is long overdue and costs nothing.

Finola Cassidy was responding to comments by the Tánaiste, Simon Harris, who said he would like a State apology to be delivered to people affected by the drug this year.

Thalidomide was prescribed to pregnant women in the 1950s and 1960s as a treatment for morning sickness, but was later withdrawn because of its links to birth defects and lifelong disabilities.

Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Ms Cassidy pointed out that there are only 18 to 20 sitting days left in the Dáil between now and Christmas and said she did not know what was causing delays in delivering an apology.

"An apology costs nothing, you know, and maybe we don't need another Christmas to pass without receiving it.

"I feel very strongly that it's long overdue and, you know, an apology in itself will have to be meaningful."

"We don't understand what is going on behind the scenes," Ms Cassidy said, "but we will respect the process."

She said any apology would have to address the State's failure to withdraw thalidomide in a timely manner and its failure to protect children who suffered health problems as a result of the drug.

Adequate healthcare was not provided, she said, and compensation awards were never approved by the courts, meaning they could have been withdrawn at any time.

The final apology must copper-fasten all of this, she told Morning Ireland, because survivors do not have the energy or health to return to the table on the issue.

"I think we have been fair. I think our viewpoint, for such a small group, is genuine and fair. We really hope they can instruct all the parties involved that this has to be done."