David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome our guests. I apologise that I will have to leave after my contribution given a motion on the National Ambulance Service, on which we have to speak as party spokespersons, is to be taken in the House.

It is unacceptable that all these years after Sláintecare was created, we are still having discussions about delivery mechanisms, who is accountable for what and governance issues. That, in and of itself, sums up the approach. We have gone from having Ms Magahy as the executive director of Sláintecare and the Sláintecare programme implementation office to a structure that now designates the heads of the HSE and the Department as the two key drivers of Sláintecare.

They have, of course, an important role to play in their leadership positions, but there is no identifiable person whose sole job it is to ensure all the elements of Sláintecare are pulled together.

It was a mistake to not have gone with the committee recommendation of placing this under the Department of the Taoiseach. That would have given it the prominence and political leadership Sláintecare needs. There should have been a Cabinet subcommittee made up of the Minister for Finance, the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, the Minister for Health, and the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science because workforce planning is such a crucial issue to healthcare delivery as well. I will not ask our guests if not doing this was a mistake because I do necessarily want them to step into the political sphere. Would they contend that it is the best option and that we should still look at placing the delivery of Sláintecare under the Department of the Taoiseach? Is that their view as people who were part of the process when the programme was being put together?