Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

The Minister is continually hiding behind the Health Service Executive and has failed to do her duty.

The Taoiseach mentioned extra beds. Perhaps he could take this matter to the Minister for Health and Children. We are now faced with the closure of a medical ward in James Connolly Memorial Hospital for a full month in the summer; the closure of a surgical ward in the same hospital for a full month in the summer; the cancellation of all outpatient clinics for two full weeks in summer and December in James Connolly Memorial Hospital; the halving of beds in two wards in Tallaght from 60 to 30 from next week; the cancellation from June of "hospital in the home" which allows patients to be discharged home early; reduced services in Monaghan and Dundalk without any extra resources being put into Cavan or Drogheda; respite services being cut; and cancer services being cut in Sligo and in Mayo without being replaced. There is a consistent pattern here with hundreds of patients from all over the country now streaming into Deputies' clinics because they cannot get medicines from 1 May. Fianna Fáil Deputies are saying this is a matter for the HSE. As outlined by Deputies Jan O'Sullivan and James Reilly at the Joint Committee on Health and Children, the Minister for Health and Children instructed the HSE to get on with it.

All of these cuts indicate either that the Taoiseach does not know or that the Tánaiste and incoming Taoiseach does not care. In the final hours left to him in the powerful position as Taoiseach, will he take aside the Minister for Health and Children, who has been a loyal servant to him over the years, and ask her to direct the Health Service Executive, as is within her authority, to produce a plan to reject front-line cuts in services for thousands of patients across the country? If he does that before he leaves office he will at least have done some good given that we have a health crisis being presided over by the Minister for Health and Children who will not accept any responsibility for it but passes the buck continually to the Health Service Executive.

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