Paul Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will move on because Deputy Kehoe has covered the issue. I will not call it "profit" because HSI is a non-profit organisation but, if it does not cost it €160 to provide a passport to an owner, irrespective of how long it takes, there is a margin involved. Why is that not being used to increase staff numbers or to improve the terms and conditions of existing staff when staff leaving to take up better offers elsewhere is used as an excuse for the backlog? There is a steady flow of income from this service. It is €160 per foal and there are a lot of foals in Ireland. In HSI's internal accounting, could it not ring-fence passport money for passport production, avoiding the situation of people leaving to get better terms and conditions elsewhere? It would pay for itself. Instead, money from passport income is being siphoned off to run other parts of the organisation. It would solve the biggest problem I come across with the general public and horse breeders and owners. It is self-financing. The opening statement says that the reason for the backlog is that staff are leaving and that the reason for staff leaving is that they are able to get better terms and conditions elsewhere. With this opportunity for self-financing, management should not have allowed that to happen.