Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent)

I strongly support this motion. Waste has to be confronted, cannot be condoned and must be eliminated. As someone who has worked at the coalface of general hospital services for more than 20 years, I am keenly aware of the absolute need to efficiently use scarce resources. Were waste confronted, the additional monies made available could be used for hospital, educational and housing services.

For the past ten years, €5 million has been sought by my constituency for South Tipperary General Hospital and to provide proper services in Cashel and Clonmel. The €50 million wasted on e-voting would supply ten times and the €150 million wasted on PPARS 30 times the required funds. I am aware of this situation and would like to see waste confronted and eliminated. I hope that neither the Government nor the Opposition will use this issue as a smokescreen to deflect from the more serious issue of the mismanagement of Government funds whereby the budget surplus, which currently is €34 billion, was used and prioritised in the eight years the two Government parties have been in office to build roads and bridges and roll out broadband instead of being used to provide social services such as health, education and housing. The best infrastructure a country could have is a well educated workforce and a healthy population. That money should be used to fund social services. The Government's failure to do that marks its greatest mismanagement and scandal.

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