Tom Shehan (Fine Gael)

My colleagues and I have been approached by people - I am talking about middle Ireland - who can no longer afford to go to the doctor or dentist. I have often wondered if there are ways in which price reductions could be imposed on these professional services because, as they currently stand, they are untouchable. An elderly constituent told me recently that this has been done by Governments in the past through pricing orders. I ask the Leader to establish - be it through the Minister for Finance or the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform - whether we could use pricing orders as a mechanism to reduce the cost to families of consulting doctors, dentists, solicitors, accountants and other professionals. Perhaps the Competition Authority could become involved, in addition to consumer protection authorities. I have been asked why such prices have not been reduced. Prices have not reduced when one considers some doctors claim up to €750,000 a year under the medical card scheme. Why would they need to drop their prices and thereby cut the cost involved for a family or a family member attending a doctor? I call on the Leader to explore, be it with the Minister for Finance or someone else, if a mechanism of pricing orders could be introduced to reduce the cost of professional services for families which are struggling to cope.