Marcella Corcoran Kennedy (Offaly, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I did not interrupt the Deputy, so I would really appreciate an opportunity to answer without interruption. I am hearing quite a lot of negativity from the Deputy about her local hospital. I think it is very irresponsible to create an impression that it is an unsafe place for people to attend to have their babies delivered. I have no doubt that the people who are working there are extremely competent and well capable of delivering babies when required. It is absolute nonsense to suggest we are abdicating our responsibility. The recruitment that the HSE is telling me it is doing is happening across the country. We are facing a national recruitment challenge that is not specific to a particular hospital. Having said all of that, I do not need to tell Deputy Chambers that the HSE delivers services on behalf of the Government. It is responsible for this. It gives us answers to explain what it is doing, or attempting to do, in areas like recruitment. The Deputy might not like what I am saying, but all I am doing is setting out what the HSE is telling me it is doing. The HSE has advised me that it is determined to fill these positions so that it can continue to help the women of the area in question to deliver their children in a safe manner, as they are used to doing.

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