Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

While I am not an economist, I have spent much of my political life apologising to economists. The important aspect of debt is that it must be kept at a certain level relative to GDP, GNP or whatever measurement one is using, but that ratio has changed dramatically as a result of good management. If steps that were taken at great cost to the health services and across the board had not been taken, we would still be in the same position but we could quickly find ourselves in that situation again. We should not forgot that ten or 11 years ago, everybody told anybody who wanted to listen that there was no need to worry, that everything would be okay and that we could see the matter out. It did not happen that way, however, and we must be very cautious not to allow it to happen again.

A question arose earlier about the access to cancer treatment. It has been suggested that people have been denied access to cancer treatment due to waiting lists, a lack of beds or a lack of other facilities. Will Dr. Coffey indicate the extent of the problem? It is an alarming issue which has serious consequences for patients' health. The Chairman will be glad to know that I will have one further question.