James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)

It is a sad reflection that the health service has not improved. That is the problem, given all the money that has gone in and all the waste that is there. The Minister referred to me accusing her of misleading the Dáil. I will cite one instance that springs to mind immediately. She said the cancer czar, Professor Tom Keane, had met the Irish College of General Practitioners and agreed new protocols for GP referral when no such meeting had taken place. All that took place was a lunch, but the Minister failed to correct the record no matter how many times she was reminded of it. That is just one example.

On what I have said, other doctors are saying it publicly. I am careful in what I say and I do not believe in scare-mongering, but I have already given the Minister two instances. I join Deputy Ó Caoláin in conveying my sympathies to the families and loved ones of those who have lost their lives to swine flu.

The big issue here - the Minister was asked about this in the previous question, but she did not answer it - is the lack of isolation facilities within the accident and emergency departments. They are so overcrowded that people are sitting on top of each other because trolleys are not available. I have already outlined the situation and I do not wish to reiterate it. We are still talking about plans for tomorrow instead of action today, which bothers me. The Minister has still not told us why she will not tender out to nursing homes for rehabilitation. There are 2,000 such beds so surely some nursing homes could be asked to tender 30 or 40 beds for occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and physiotherapy. That would take the pressure off the 500 people who are lying in hospital but do not need to be there at the moment. Those beds could thus be freed up.

Why is not every hospital operating to the best standards? The Minister has had six years in office. If she knows what best practice is, why has she not been able to standardise it? What in the name of God was the HSE for, except to bring uniformity of care to 4.2 million people? It has utterly failed as a project, like so much else that the Minister has put in place, including her non-existent co-located hospitals.

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