Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)

I agree with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment that the Travers report was complete. It was complete in destroying the reputations of senior officials in the Department of Health and Children. It does not, however, cover the political responsibilities of the previous Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Martin, or the Ministers of State, Deputies Tim O'Malley and Callely. It is clear from Mr. Travers's report that the briefing note that allowed the Minister of State, Deputy Tim O'Malley, to conclude issues in regard to nursing home charges is at variance with what has been said in the House, and elsewhere, by the Minister and Minister of State, Deputies Martin and Callely. The Fine Gael Party will call on the Minister to make a frank statement on these briefing notes at the Joint Committee on Health and Children.

Far too many questions remain unanswered in the report, particularly in the area of political responsibility. The conflict of evidence between the Minister, Deputy Martin, and Mr. Michael Kelly must be cleared up. There is disagreement between what was and was not said at a meeting on 10 March. We do not see any reason Mr. Kelly would lie to either the Minister or Mr. Travers. It is accepted that there was maladministration in the Department of Health and Children. However, there has also been political irresponsibility in the Department, particularly since 2001.

There is the issue of the missing letter to the Attorney General, which was not followed up. Mr. Kelly is of the belief that he passed the letter to the then Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Martin, given its important consequences for the Department. An official who worked in the unit dealing with the charges who recalled it being in the ministerial suite supported Mr. Kelly's belief. He also recalled being approached by another official in the office to discuss the papers in question. This official's recollection is partly collaborated by another official from the minister's office who also recalls discussing this issue. There is significant evidence to suggest the file was in the ministerial secretariat at some stage. However, it seems to have gone missing.

Mr. Kelly is rightly blamed for not keeping his eye on the matter and not following up to check if this letter went to the Attorney General. Equally, there is a political responsibility on both the then Minister, Deputy Martin and the then Minister of State with special responsibility in this area, Deputy Callely, to give frank answers on where they stood in regard to this matter.

The role of ministerial advisers was not explained at the committee on health and children yesterday. Were Deputy Martin's advisers in the chain of command, a buffer between himself and his civil servants or were they lateral to the Minister, giving him outside advice? It seems from the report that the then Minister for Health and Children did not know what was going on in his Department, with certain advice not being passed on. So far it is the civil servants who are being accused of this. Very little has been said about the role of his advisers. It is not crystal clear where they fitted into all these events. This is an issue that needs to be cleared up. It is difficult to get anything from this report as to the role the Minister's advisers played in the Department of Health and Children during his tenure there. Perhaps they are responsible for not passing information on to him.

Mr. Kelly has taken the rap for this. If he is to take the rap for maladministration in the Department and if he is the only person to take responsibility for this, does that basically mean that he is the person who was fully in charge of that Department and if that is the case, what role does the Minister have? Does he have any ministerial responsibility to his Department? We have read both the guidelines issued to him and the 1997 Act. At the end of the day, the former Minister, Deputy Martin, has full political responsibility for this issue which was raised every few months in the Department. I do not accept the former Minister, Deputy Martin, taking this issue back to 1976. There was a High Court case in 1975 followed by regulations in 1976. High Court advice was given to the Fianna Fáil Minister for Health in 1978, which was not acted upon. The heads of a Bill were brought forward by a Fine Gael Minister for Health, which were not acted on when Fianna Fáil came back into power. We could easily go back prior to 2001 and lay much blame at the door of Fianna Fáil Administrations, but we are looking at the irresponsibility of what happened in the Departments from that date on. Deputy Perry will expand on that issue. The former Minister, Deputy Martin, should appear before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children to explain his role fully.

See this speech in context