Seán Kyne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Okay. I have raised it before. I am hearing dates and I have heard dates before. I heard dates of February 2019, May 2019, then it was delayed for the options appraisal, then it was going to September 2020, and here we are in October 2021 and there is now talk of 2022. I have not been given a specific month, nor would I believe one at this stage because I have heard so many different dates. I ask the Minister to come back to me on that with urgency. There is frustration, as I said, from the front-line workers in relation to a project everybody, including at the most senior level of the Taoiseach and former Taoiseach, and the Minister and his predecessors, accepts is absolutely required. Ms Laura Magahy appeared before the committee at our last meeting. She talked about a more ambitious plan locally in Galway. This comes back to the whole argument over what is needed. The Minister has pointed to the fact that more inpatient beds are needed. I would welcome an update, following tomorrow's Cabinet meeting, for Galway elected representatives on what exactly is planned with respect to inpatient facilities and where they are going to be located, if they do happen and whether they would be provided in Merlin Park, as the Saolta University Health Care Group desires, or in UHG. I look forward to such an update. As a final point on that, the Minister mentioned in his opening statement that 850 permanent beds have been provided to the hospital system this year. Will he supply details on the location of all those? Is there a small number of them in every hospital or a large number in certain facilities? He might be able to provide that detail to us if he does not have it now.

Turning to Mr. Watt, he will know the expression "poacher turned gamekeeper", although perhaps in his case it is gamekeeper turned poacher, because he is now fighting for extra resources whereas in his previous role he may have been pushing back against Departments being given extra resources. That might be an unfair categorisation but he can respond. Is his primary role about securing additional funding for healthcare in this budget and all budgets, or is it about reform, saving us from waste, although that might be unfair, and improving efficiency within the healthcare system? How does Mr. Watt see his role? I ask because we have seen increases in budget every year. There have been many successes and where there is capital expenditure and increases in staff, these are obviously visible and have an important role. At the same time, given Mr. Watt's previous experience where does he see his role as Secretary General now?