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

On this subject, it was put to me recently by an outsider that the level of the shortfall this year was an attempt by the health services to grab a greater slice of the budget at a time when there were many challenges. I did not agree with him, and it was a "him". I am not saying where he is or was at the time but he put it to me that we were attempting to increase the budget by magnifying the shortfall, and that when compared with previous years - he mentioned ten or 15 years - there was always a shortfall in the health services budget. Could Mr. Gloster comment on that?