Mr. Bernard Gloster:

In all sincerity, I believe the recent comments by the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, the Minister, Deputy Ryan, my line Minister and the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, have been unequivocally clear. The health service is funded to a very significant amount of money. Within that, it has a certain amount of money for a certain number of people to be paid. The criticism, rightly, is that whatever about needing to go above that number, we cannot go above it when we do not have the money. The recruitment pause by me this year might have been linked to being in the same cycle as the budget announcement, but it is also linked to the fact that I am only just in the job. I signalled very clearly my intention when I came to exercise my duties responsibly to control the part of the budget I could but to also point out what I cannot control, namely, inflation and demand. I cannot control those. I have a responsibility to respond to people in that context and to be transparent. I do not think anyone in this committee would disagree that I have only been upfront with everybody about the position I am managing.