Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the committee for allowing me time to address the witnesses. I welcome the witnesses and thank them for their opening statements and for taking our questions.

From what has been said so far about the embargo and the information that has been outlined here this morning, as has been mentioned, it does seem quite arbitrary and ambiguous. I am grateful for the further clarification from Mr. Gloster. Government TDs who have spoken on this matter have demonstrated a lack of consistency. They falsely reassured Opposition TDs that all jobs offered would be safe. That is not the case from what Mr. Gloster said. He mentioned that he would not have the number of positions that have been withdrawn by way of no formal acceptance being received. To turn the question, does he have the number of positions that have been formally accepted and therefore would be safe?

Staff vacancies and absences are a prominent issue in UHL. For context, looking at the performance report from October to December of last year, which is where we are now moving into the winter, it shows the percentage of absences in UHL was 6.5%, which was the highest in the country. When we look back further during the Covid period, again we were the highest in the country for the rate of Covid at 2.5%. The most recent response to a parliamentary question that I could find shows that there was a level of vacancy in the emergency department in UHL for nursing and midwifery of 47.67. I know a Senator has already asked the question of whether a compassionate decision might come into play when it comes to the level of vacancy for nurses and midwives in the emergency department in UHL given the high number. Mr. Gloster referred to the additional staffing in emergency departments nationally but does he have a further breakdown for UHL to give more of an overview of the staffing that has been brought in this year?