Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I asked Mr. Woods whether he was confident that the investigation under way in the public hospital was independent. He indicated he remains open to the possibility of an external investigation being carried out on foot of the completion of the internal investigation if he is not confident. Will he clarify this statement and provide a timeframe for the completion of the investigation?

Before commenting on unusual arrangements between staff members and certain medical companies, it should be noted that I do not wish to cast aspersions on anyone. It has been brought to my attention, however, that senior personnel in the procurement section of the Health Service Executive benefited from off-site hospitality. Mr. Woods is joined today by the head of procurement in the HSE. I ask the head of procurement to confirm or deny that he or any of his staff has benefited from any off-site hospitality. What is the staff complement of the section he heads?

When will Mr. Woods revert to me on the €500,000 patient management system at the Mater public hospital and the contract for mattresses in Mullingar Regional Hospital?

I noted that the HSE cut prices across the board in 2011. In some instances, large hospitals were getting more favourable prices than those that were introduced at the time but ended up paying increased prices for services.