David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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Okay. It says here the savings were made but my understanding is that, for 2021, the spend was in the region of about €500 million. Can we get that briefing note this time? It is reasonable for us to know how much money we are outsourcing. Can I ask for a bit more information as well? I have asked this in parliamentary questions and we never get the answer. We get thrown from Billy to Jack and we might get one part but we never get the full answer. I do not think it is outrageous for me to ask how much of total spend we outsource to the private sector. I am asking about the total agency spend. What is the total spend on outsourcing, whether for care, diagnostics or whatever, outside of our acute hospitals? Then there is the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NPTF. Will someone in the Department provide me with that information, the total spend across all of that? I want to know how much in total of any money allocated under any of the subheadings is spent on outsourcing and agency. Can that be sent to me?