John Brassil (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am sure Dr. Kavanagh is aware of the Irish Dental Association's claim that it was not properly consulted. It claims that the new policy will make dental health worse instead of better. There is an element of clarification or relationship building required. What is being fed into the political system by the Irish Dental Association is that it is not overly impressed with the consultation process on this strategy. I am not sure if Dr. Kavanagh is aware of it but the Irish Dental Association is telling us that it was not properly consulted. Whether that is factual, I do not know but it is out there in ether.

My colleague, Deputy Donnelly, has tabled a number of parliamentary questions on waiting lists, the responses to which are complex. On the final page of one response, it is stated that the number of people on the treatment waiting for less than two years is just over 10,000. The number for those waiting two to four years is 7,133 and for those waiting greater than four years is 1,316, which is a total of 18,400, which is a substantial number of people. How is it planned to tackle this backlog?