James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)

The Government announced the primary health care strategy way back in 2001. Now seven years later all we have are virtual teams. I believe that there might be ten or 11 projects that have seen the light of day. When the Minister talks about the funding, is it not the case that in many of the areas where 13 were supposed to be put in place, three ended up being appointed. While it is clear to me and others involved in primary care, the question must be asked as to whether the primary care strategy is dead. The original funding will not happen as the Minister said in 2005. Is it not the case that the HSE is now rapidly creating phantom primary care teams? Where GPs expressed an interest in primary care teams, this is now construed as being active participation and is meaningless.

Not alone has the failure of the Government to keep its promise to fund primary care to the tune of €1.1 billion as promised by the Minister's predecessor, Deputy Martin, been extremely damaging, but because it was in the pipeline it stymied many developments that might otherwise have taken place in general practice, some of which are now starting to come on stream as people realise that the funding will not be provided and these developments will not take place so people need to look to themselves to try to make things better. The situation has got so bad that this morning Senator Liam Twomey issued a statement pointing out that a GP cannot even get a blood test carried out for an elderly lady. If he is to repeat that, the laboratory still cannot guarantee it will be able to do the test because it has not got the resources. How is that for resourcing of primary health care?

As the Minister pointed out, the funding as originally envisaged will not happen and there is no identifiable strategy to allow any of these developments to take place. This is key. Does the Minister agree that it is the HSE's view, through Professor Drumm, that primary care should take a much more active role? How is that to happen in the absence of funding? It is all the more laughable to talk of reducing bed numbers and not delivering the 3,000 promised. The Minister mentioned co-location, which clearly will not work. I understand why the banks are nervous. The future of the NTPF under a change of Government will have to be reviewed. That should be borne in mind. Is the primary health care strategy dead? What specific funding has the Minister made available? She mentioned the past two years; the funding has been abysmal.

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