Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)

I thank the Minister for her reply. That all sounds very good and progressive but the Competition Authority notes that before any decision is made regarding a new contract in an area, due regard must be given to the viability of existing GP practices. The marking system used for selecting who will be given a contract gives more points to GPs who already hold contracts. As the authority points out, this is not good for either competition, the patient or the service. Everyone will agree that having competition around the corner from another GP probably forces people to up-skill. Newly qualified GPs are being forced into practice in existing areas. It needs to be opened up.

I refer to a report by Dr. Ronan Boland whom I know quite well. He stated that criticism of the decision on payment agreements for GPs was no longer valid. He said that as part of the Croke Park deal, the most recent public service agreement, the Government said discussions would take place with the Irish Medical Organisation regarding commitments to make appropriate changes to the Competition Act 2002 to enable the IMO to represent its members in negotiations. I welcome this proposal but where does this leave the poor old Irish Pharmacy Union?

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