Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 30 November 2016
Select Committee on the Future of Healthcare
Health Service Reform: HSE
9:00 am
Mr. Tony O'Brien:
We have a considerable amount. We have shared quite a bit of data with the committee but we can share whatever else we have not shared. I refute the Deputy's point. There is no unwillingness or lack of desire to maximise the number of permanent contracted directly-employed staff versus agency staff. We cannot fill posts with staff that do not exist. We cannot allow services to be less safe by refusing to employ agency staff where we can get them. Even the employment of agency staff is becoming extremely difficult right now for all the same reasons.