Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Can I respond? What the Deputy said was that he does not see the progress. I reiterate this for people who are watching because I would hate people to think there is no progress on one of the most important projects in our republic. This year, we will have added more beds to the public system than any year on record. This year, we will have hired more people into the public system than any year on record. This year, we will have added more critical care capacity to the public system than any year on record. This year, we will have funded GP access to diagnostics at a level that has never been achieved before. Some 97% of the projects that we have all agreed are critical to reform are on track, or on track with minor issues. I appreciate the Deputy's job is to keep the pressure on me; that is what he is doing and I respect that. However, let us make sure that the public know that there is a vast amount of progress. We must almost always push for more but let us make sure that the public and the people working in our system and who depend on our system know there are levels of progress being made in the system now that are the most on record. I want to put that on the record.