Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses. We all raise discretionary medical cards at these meetings from time to time. There has been some progress, albeit after a long haul. From the initial response, it appears the issues are being dealt with sympathetically but it has taken a hell of a long time. I do not know how many of the various patients in respect of whom I have made representatives have been dealt with. I am not certain but I am getting feedback and inquiring further into it. Suffice it to say, it should not be necessary to drag it out to that extent. This is a compassionate measure that needs compassionate treatment and for the same to continue in the future.

On budgetary projections, why should we have this problem annually since the inception of the HSE? Every year there is a shortfall in the budget. Why is there a shortfall in the budget? Is it because we do not explain exactly what we are doing when the provision and request is made to finance in this regard? Is it because there is something that recurs that we do not know about or is it that we do not project into the future? At the beginning of the budget period, do we not anticipate? Why does it always fall to a Supplementary Estimate, at considerable cost, because something turned up that we are not sure about, that we did not anticipate, see or envisage or whatever the case may be? That has to stop. If it does not, the whole thing will collapse because the public will become very suspicious and will react badly.

Every year for the past 12, 13 or more years, I have tabled a parliamentary question after the health budget has been determined asking the Minister to indicate if the health budget would be adequate to meet the requirements of the coming year. Every time the answer was “Yes” but the actual situation was that it was not. That cannot and should not continue. In any business where that happened, questions would be asked, heads would roll and it would become unacceptable.