Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My first question is for Ms Ní Sheaghdha. She referred to inadequate staffing in her presentation. Does that break down on a regional basis? I am specifically interested in the mid-west region. I am a Deputy for Clare and over the past two or three years, the trolley crisis has been at its worst in my region. I would welcome a brief response on that.

I have a question for Ms Clyne on international recruitment. I have recently been helping an individual who I do not want identify, except to say that he would be a key individual to recruit into the Irish system, but have come up against a barrier which has not been mentioned today, namely problems with securing a visa from the Department of Justice and Equality so that his family can accompany him here. He has a young family and will not come here until they can come too so because of an administrative delay, patients are losing out. My point is that there are barriers other than those already referred to by the witnesses.

Finally, the Hanly report identified the need for 3,600 consultants by 2013 but now the estimated requirement is approximately 4,500. One can make an analogy with premiership soccer. There was a time when a decent soccer player would play for any club and be proud to do so but now players only want to play for the London clubs and northern English football has suffered as a result. There is something quite similar happening with consultants in Ireland. They do not want to come west of the Shannon. Endocrinologists, neurologists and all of the other specialists needed west of the Shannon in places like Ennis and University Hospital Limerick are not coming. I ask Professor Irvine to elaborate on the other barriers that exist beyond the issue of pay which he well articulated earlier. I think there are unwritten and unmentioned barriers, many of which relate to the unattractiveness of leaving Ireland's cities.