Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)

As I did not hear the beginning of the Taoiseach's answer, could he clarify if the National Economic and Social Council is the only State agency for which his Department is responsible? If that is the agency for which his Department is responsible, why was a question I put down to him some time ago asking him to comment on a report produced by the council passed to the Minister for Finance for reply? If we ask the Taoiseach questions about an agency for which his Department is responsible, he should have to answer those questions instead of batting them off to another Department for reply.

In respect of what the Taoiseach said about social dialogue, while I take on board his comments about not wanting to incur further costs for his Department or the taxpayer generally in terms of special advisers, might it not be an idea in some areas, particularly important ones such as health where there is a crisis, to have representatives of the INMO and of doctors and nurses on his subcommittee along with representatives from the HSE who might tell him that the reason there is a crisis in our hospitals is because the Government is massacring staff in terms of the number of staff and the budgets?

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