Colm Burke (Cork North-Central, Fine Gael)
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I am TD for Cork North-Central. I was on the health committee from 2011 until 2024. I was out of it because I was made Minister of State at the Department of Health. My whole focus since I became a Member of the Oireachtas has been advancing healthcare and trying to make sure that people have access to healthcare regardless of income or whatever. The important thing is access to healthcare in a timely manner. Members of previous health committees have worked very much as a team, which is the only way we can advance change.

There are a lot of things we need to get done. For instance, one of the big issues I have relates to our failure to computerise the healthcare sector. It is costing huge money because there are paper files everywhere a patient might go. With the advances in computerisation, there is no excuse for this. We are now the last in Europe. It is about making the healthcare sector more efficient. That is one of the things we should try to work on over the next three or four years. I am not prepared to take excuses any more on this issue. Even though I might be a Government TD, my issue is still about accountability. The Department of Health and all other Departments need to be accountable to us and deliver healthcare in the best possible way for the entire population.