Mr. Stephen Mulvany:

With apologies to the Deputy, that is a different question. He had asked whether we gave any indication or commitment. I believe "commitment" was the word he used. The answer to that is probably "No". Is there a recognition that there is an issue which needs to be addressed? Absolutely. That was covered in our opening statement. There is clearly an issue. That issue has been discussed by our Minister and other Ministers. We have been instructed to carry out a data gathering exercise with a view, as my colleague said, to identifying a phased resolution to the problem. Yes, there is a recognition of the issue. Is there any heading in the 2018 HSE budget which has the money to pay for this? No. We do not have such a heading. We sought funding for that but did not secure it.