Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

On that point, it is an extraordinary scenario that is being painted and we are getting drip fed about what actually happened. When you consider what is involved here, the head of the HSE on hearing what the draft budget was going to be for health, pointed out that that budget would pose "significant and punitive risks to the public". That is an extremely serious claim that is being made, that the level of funding for the health services poses "significant and punitive risks to the public". The letter containing that claim was sent from the Secretary General of the Department of Health to the Secretary General of the Department of public expenditure and that individual has claimed that he never saw the letter. This goes to the heart of the dysfunction that exists within the whole area of funding for the health service, the attitude of the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, and the lack of understanding of what is required to run a proper health service; a public health service. That is why I think this issue is so significant. Year after year we have had an underfunding of the health service and a lack of understanding about the need for reform and the fact that reform has to be funded. That is why I believe that we need to absolutely get to the bottom of this now. We need to find out whether the Secretary General of the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform saw the letter - he claims he did not - who did the letter go to, who opened the email and what was done with that email. If it was not the Secretary General who saw it then, presumably, somebody at a senior level within that Department saw it. I think this is a huge issue. I think it needs to be explained thoroughly and we need to see the paper trail for this.

Unless the whole issue of the funding of the health service is taken seriously by the Department of public expenditure, we will never have a properly functioning public health service. It is news today that it was the Minister's Secretary General who sent on that email. There is a requirement, in the public interest, that that information and scenario are fully explained and we find out exactly what happened to that email.