The Cabinet has approved an ex gratia payment of €20,000 for non-disclosure of the CervicalCheck audit.

The figure was reached after being examined by an independent panel.

This panel was chaired by Mr Justice Aindrias Ó Caoimh.

It determined that €20,000 was the appropriate amount for the ex gratia payment.

The Department of Health will make payments to those individuals who have applied, and where the independent panel has already determined that appropriate disclosure did not take place, shortly.

The panel is also progressing its assessments of the remaining applications.

The scheme remains open, and those who have not yet applied can still do so.

Health Minister Simon Harris has also received Cabinet approval to publish a bill to set up a CervicalCheck tribunal.

The CervicalCheck Tribunal Bill will be published in the coming days.

The tribunal will hear and determine claims arising from the retrospective CervicalCheck clinical audit, and from the expert panel review of Cervical Screening - in particular in respect of the reading of smears.

It will be chaired by Ms Justice Mary Irvine.

Minister Harris said: "I am pleased that Government has approved the publication of the bill and I intend to introduce it in the Dáil at second stage next week, with a view to having the legislation in place before the summer recess."