Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

These issues were raised with me by patient advocacy groups, and I took them very seriously. On the back of that, I spoke directly with front-line clinicians involved in providing paediatric orthopaedic services. I asked them whether they felt they got dedicated beds, dedicated theatre space and priority access to MRI, theatre, etc. The answer I received was that they did not. I have therefore taken the unprecedented step, which I have never had to do before, of instructing the HSE to send in its internal audit team.

We need to wait to see what it comes back with but I would like an answer very quickly. This is not going to be a piece of work lasting several months. It is a fairly discrete piece of work that asks where this money was spent. Let us not prejudge it but if it is the case that there was a material allocation outside of the intended Government purpose, and the purpose of this Oireachtas which votes through the budgets, that will be a very serious matter.

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