Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Independent)

It is not about the past; it is about the future. It is about having an agenda. The words "reform" and "change" have been debased in this House. It is about improving services for patients bit by bit, day by day. What is the agenda now? It is to provide a risk equalisation scheme, for example, that encompasses solidarity between younger and older people and sicker and healthier people. To be fair, the Labour Party has been supportive of that. It is about defining in law what people are entitled to and eligible for in our health services.

See this speech in context