Like Deputy Carey, I have availed of similar services in Donegal over the last four years. I had three children delivered in Letterkenny General Hospital. It is enlightening to hear from Deputy Carey that all of those with whom he is involved have had such good treatment in such restricted financial times. It is heartening as a Government Member to hear that. I am delighted to hear it.

I welcome the Bill, which recognises the professional standards of our nurses and midwives. I firmly believe that nurses and midwives are the unsung heroes of our health system. They are professionals that we all encounter at some stage of our lives.

It is significant that this Bill has been warmly welcomed by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation. It is vital that the public are confident in the way we deliver and administer our health services, ensuring that patient safety is at the top of the agenda. Confidence in the system must be the cornerstone, both for the nursing and midwifery professions as well as for the general public.

This Bill follows on from regulatory changes introduced for other health professionals in recent years and, therefore, it is appropriate that nurses and midwives are recognised on an equal footing to other health care professionals.

It has been recognised that the regulatory framework needs to be modernised to include a greater emphasis on patient safety, governance, accountability, openness, fairness, efficiency in disciplinary procedures and assured standards. This Bill puts public safety and confidence at the heart of all that nurses and midwives do in a statutory manner, whilst also safeguarding the integrity of those professions.

The current Nurses Act was enacted in 1985 and we have come a long way since then in terms of health care provision. Our health system has developed further, bringing with it the nurses and midwives who have been ever willing to improve and progress their roles to meet the changing needs of patients. The Bill provides for the establishment of a new regulatory body, the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland. The new board will have a lay majority among its board members. It will consist of 23 members in total, representing all interested parties, including nurses, midwives, educational bodies, members of the public and stakeholders. It is vital that nurses and midwives are assured that their views and concerns are represented on the board.

A major element of the board's work will be to administer complaints in conjunction with the fitness to practice committee. I welcome the fact that fitness to practice inquiries will be held in public in future, unless, on application, the particular circumstances of an individual case require it to be held in private. This provides for greater transparency for all of those involved. It is vital that a transparent complaints system is in place for all those who may need it. Nurses and midwives must have confidence in the complaints system, as must the public to ensure that best practice prevails.

Constant advances in medicine, surgery and obstetrics are immense, requiring similar advances in the ability and willingness of all those delivering such services. This Bill will provide for nurses and midwives to maintain their professional competence on an ongoing basis, which is vital both to the service and the confidence of our nurses and midwives. To ensure this happens, the board will establish a competency scheme to monitor the competence of all nurses and midwives in the State. Patient care and safety are key to providing their services, and regulation and governance must acknowledge that fact. This promotes the need for proper regulation and ongoing training among these professionals.

Nurses and midwives must be assured that their expertise, qualifications and experience are recognised. I welcome the definite focus on education and training in this regard. A positive feature of the Bill puts an obligation on employers to facilitate the maintenance of professional competence among nurses and midwives, in particular by providing learning opportunities in the workplace. We are all aware of the benefit of experience as an aid to education and training, particularly in practical settings such as a hospital.

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