Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will respond quickly, if I may. For me, the red line is services. We do not cut services but, rather, protect and grow services for patients. The question then is how to do that within the funding available. That is why we have set up a productivity task force. There are potentially significant savings not just for this year, but into future years. That is important. We have just over €1 billion in non-core funding. A very substantial amount has been allocated against inflationary pressures as well. The reason I am saying it is uncertain is that nobody knows what will happen this year in terms of inflation and demand. Last year, we got hit with both at the same time. We got hit with a massive increase in healthcare price inflation, unanticipated by anybody, and we got hit with a surge in patient demand that was also unanticipated. For example, we had a 16% year-on-year increase in GP referrals. There are differing views on what is driving that. One view is that the population is catching up on care that was deferred during Covid. Last year, we went into a year where prices and demand were soaring.