Mr. Bernard Gloster:

It is because it is not based on analysis that is properly specified or set out. We are making progress on waiting lists. We are reducing the number of people who are long-waiting and the number of people who were waiting longer than the Sláintecare targets. We made significant progress last year and we are hoping to do more this year. There is a challenge in the sheer numbers who are treated every year. The number of outpatient consultations is 3.5 million, the number of day-case procedures is around 1 million and the number of inpatient procedures is between 300,000 and 400,000. If those numbers are off, my colleagues will correct me.

The volume of people coming on to the waiting lists every year is phenomenal. There is a huge amount of activity and this year we hope to combine the core HSE activity on outpatient procedures with additional activity from the NTPF. We are hoping to have the highest level of activity ever within the system. We hope to continue to make progress on the waiting list issue. We also need more bed capacity, more staffing and reform. We cannot have investment without reform. We have to reform the pathways and how we work in order to improve flow and productivity. Small changes in productivity and how we work can deliver significant results. This is why we do not accept the fatalistic view regarding the waiting lists.