Mr. Jim Ryan:

The Senator asked me earlier on for a personal commitment. I am talking about trying to do the very best we can. The Senator asked me about what is new and I am trying to do what we can in order to do that. This morning I had a report about the recruitment process being in place for new graduates, for those who are coming from a graduate programme, and people who we recruit internationally. We are doing everything we can to try to reopen the 11 beds that are currently closed in Linn Dara. Six beds are closed at the moment in St. Vincent's Psychiatric Hospital in Fairview. We have consultants starting there in the next weeks, which we expect will bring the number of beds back up to 12. We are recruiting non-consultant hospital doctors for the Aislinn centre in Cork, which we would hope will bring the beds available from 12 to 18. All those efforts are being made. It is not through lack of effort; it is simply that it takes time. That is all I can say.