Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Hospitals such as UHL. I was very much taken by what the Irish Hospital Consultants Association said recently about having no confidence in the Minister for Health, Deputy Harris, and I have been very much taken by what the witnesses have said here today. I want to quote what the Irish Hospital Consultants Association said on escalating a campaign, and I would like it to give us more information on what that campaign is. That is the first question.

The second question is as follows. The Irish Hospital Consultants Association said the Minister did not have "the authority, understanding, inclination or experience to deliver timely, quality hospital care ... or improving conditions for patients". Very few people have been as critical of the Minister on various different issues as I have. Others have as well, to be fair to them. I am saying this as an Opposition spokesperson, but the tone of that statement did not help the Irish Hospital Consultants Association. I have to be brutally honest about this. It did not help. I listened carefully to what the witnesses said earlier about being on the one team, stopping this being a political football, and that the different sides of the political divide do not matter. There are many sides to the political divide here, not just two. The witnesses may want to really remember that because I am not sure it comes across a lot of the time. There is huge sympathy across politics with the issues the Irish Hospital Consultants Association are dealing with and the consequences for patients. Again, I am saying all of this as an Opposition spokesperson and I have put out statements that are critical of the Minister on numerous issues, but to refer to the Minister's inclination, understanding and experience, particularly to refer to his experience, needs an explanation. Also, when the Irish Hospital Consultants Association said it was escalating its campaign, what did that mean and how will it manifest itself?