Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)

What is the function of the Cabinet sub-committee on health? How does it relate to the responsibilities of the Minister for Health and the HSE? The committee was established to underline the urgency of the needs of the health service and deal with the dramatic and disastrous effects of health cutbacks. It beggars belief that it has not yet met when hospitals across the country are suffering traumatically from the swinging and savage cuts imposed by the HSE on the Taoiseach's watch. The Taoiseach referred to wastage in the health services, as if it were a cover for the dreadful crisis that exists in them. The Government cut the number of beds in Blanchardstown hospital by 20%.

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