Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The reference I made to the international context a few moments ago was the expectation that a salary of this order would attract applicants from all over the world and one would hope people with experience of dealing with a large public sector or private sector organisation. When one looks at the responsibilities of the Secretary General of the Department of Health, one must bear in mind the fact that, as Accounting Officer, he or she has responsibility for a spend of €22 billion. Even though the HSE sits under the Department of Health, as such, the Secretary General of the Department is the Accounting Officer and is legally responsible for all of that expenditure. There are approximately 600 staff within the Department and the overall sector employs in the region of 125,000 people. There are also 19 non-commercial State bodies under the Department. It is a pivotal position right at the heart of government. The Deputy knows the ambition the Government has for Sláintecare. We increased the budget for health in 2021 by approximately €4 billion.

Some, but not all, of that is Covid related because we have real ambition to transform our health service and deliver on the Sláintecare programme.