John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

I thank the Tánaiste for her reply. Does she agree that we face a crisis, given that 80 operations are being cancelled every day, many of them because of bed shortages, and especially as Dr. Séamus O'Reilly has stated in a letter that cancer patients are being left in pain at home because they cannot access beds? Given that the population is increasing — some 120,000 Polish people are living here — does she accept that we need to revise upwards this country's bed capacity, so it is more than 3,000? The root of the problem is that the population has increased by approximately 25% since the 1980s, but the number of beds in our hospitals has decreased by approximately 25% in that time. The Tánaiste seemed to indicate to the House that she agrees with the assessment of Professor Drumm that the number of beds in our acute hospitals is sufficient. Does that continue to be her position, despite all the evidence suggesting that the opposite is the case? Will the 94 beds which were mentioned by the Tánaiste in her reply be delivered before Christmas?

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