Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

The Deputy misunderstands the situation. I have been in the House for 25 years and was in the Seanad for four years before that. I mention that because there has never been a time when more legislation in the area of health was passed or in the pipeline than in the past couple of years. Legislation in the Department of Health and Children is getting much greater attention and priority because the focus and role of the Department is clearer as a result of the division of responsibilities between the Department and the HSE.

We published the health information and quality authority Bill but it was decided to pursue the social services inspectorate in a different way than had first been suggested. Instead of having fragmentation in the health services, given that we spent the past year bringing things together, we do not want to establish a host of new organisations and then at some future point try to bring them together, with all the associated cost and inefficiency. The decision has been taken to make the social services inspectorate, which will among other things inspect nursing homes, not just in the private sector which is the norm at present but also in the public sector, part of the body that has responsibility for setting standards for health service delivery. That is a sensible suggestion which has been well received.

I decided for good reasons to put the Bill out to public consultation. The consultation process closed last Friday. I am not sure if the Deputy made a submission but, whether he did, a number of submissions were made. I have not yet had an opportunity to study the submissions but I hope to do so soon. I want to take on board the good opinions and advice that will come from the consultation process.

The important point with regard to legislation, which I am sure the Deputy will acknowledge, is to have correct legislation. I will not suggest to the Deputy that legislation by itself will stop awful things happening to old people, whether in their homes or elsewhere. However, we will have legislation that will be enforced, we will have statutory backing for standards, we will have a multidisciplinary team of inspectors and those nursing homes in the public or private sector that do not meet the high standards will not be registered and, therefore, will not be in a position to operate as nursing homes. This is a radical departure from the current situation, where the inspection process is part of the organisation that must deliver services, which is the way it has always been in this country but which is not appropriate. We will have robust legislation. A number of questions will be dealt with later, including one on Leas Cross.

I am not withholding any report. I have not seen Professor O'Neill's report or received it from the HSE, which commissioned it so I am not in a position to publish anything. Reports, whether we like it, must follow a legal process — it is a cumbersome process at times — or an injunction can be made against us to prevent us from publishing them, which would not be satisfactory. I have not seen the O'Neill report nor am I in a position to publish it. As soon as it has cleared the legal issues, it will be published, as it should be. Concealing information is not on my agenda, which is why in recent days we extended freedom of information to a host of health organisations, which will be helpful.

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