Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)

A few days later, there were leaks from the same sources saying free GP care would not be available to all those on long-term illness benefit.

We are still unsure as to who is running the system. The Minister castigated the HSE on "Prime Time" recently because its financial controller said it would delay payment of expenses to staff. He rubbished the executive but, only a few months ago, he stood up with pride to say he had seized control of the HSE and sacked the board. The cameras were organised and he was outside the HSE's headquarters dragging staff out by the scruff of their neck. Now he is saying this terrible organisation made this decision. He is either in charge or he is not. If he is, it is time he stood up and acted like it.

My difficulty is every day confidence in his comments saps away. Most Members are fair, reasonable and rational but what was said prior to the election and what has been said since is at variance. However, every day since the formation of the Government confidence in what the Minister said has ebbed away and it has been undermined by his actions, deeds and words. Most of the red line issues of huge importance to him are ebbing away on a daily basis. We await universal health insurance, free GP care for everybody, investment in primary care units and community and long-term residential care. The Minister seems to be moving further away from providing those services.

Fianna Fáil will support the Bill. The principle of intergenerational solidarity and community rating is noble and should be supported but we must go further and realise that if we retain the current system, the private health insurance system will not be sustainable. It will collapse around us and the public health system will be snowed under. The State will not have the capacity to fund or support it. We cannot wait years. The Minister must act quickly and decisively to ensure sustainability in the private health insurance market.

The issue of preventative medicine has also not been tackled. The HSE has health promotion units and the Department of Health promotes campaigns sometimes to quit smoking, reduce alcohol intake and take up fitness regimes but they are piecemeal. It is my opinion that whatever steps we take in respect of this matter would not cost a great deal to implement.

Everyone knows that we are going to be obliged to take a very strong stance on this issue. We are sitting on a generational time bomb in the context of obesity in children. I am aware of the Minister of State's commitment to reducing the level of alcohol consumption. We owe it to younger people to address the issue of obesity. We must educate ourselves and our children on the need to be active, to be fit and to eat in a healthy manner. The statistics relating to what is happening to the younger generation are alarming. Obesity is becoming a huge issue and, if we do not act now, it will become a major killer in the years to come.

There is a need for a wholehearted and concerted effort on the part of a number of Departments and agencies on this matter. Responsibility in this area always seems to fall between the Departments of Health, Education and Skills, Transport, Tourism and Sport, etc., and the HSE and other agencies. What is required is a collective, singular focus on how we promote healthy living. Let us consider the position which obtains in other countries. In Australia, for example, there is a sense that the entire society has bought into the idea of a healthy lifestyle and there has been a dramatic reduction in the number of people there who smoke. It is surprising, particularly in light of all the information available, that 28% of the population here continues to smoke. I continue to struggle with the addiction of smoking and I find it incredible that so many younger people are taking up the habit. It is also incredible that these individuals engage in binge drinking on a regular basis. Coupled to this is the fact that so many young people have sedentary lifestyles, do not take exercise and eat the wrong foods. This is a matter we must act on.

I introduced a Private Members' Bill last week which proposes that products sold in fast food outlets should be labelled to indicate the number of calories they contain. I am of the view that it would be worthwhile to discuss the possibility of introducing sugar and fat taxes. Taxation is sometimes seen as merely being a mechanism to raise revenue. However, it can also send out a signal on behalf of society, the Government or the Parliament. For example, the price of cigarettes has been increased on a continual basis. This is obviously a revenue-generating measure but, equally, it also sends out a strong signal on the part of Government and society to the effect that cigarettes are not good for people. We raise the tax on cigarettes and other tobacco products in order to make them more expensive and less attractive and thereby discourage people from smoking.

I am not a killjoy but I am of the view that we have been slow to tackle the extremely important issue of childhood obesity. The latter can give rise to diabetes and to people losing their sight or being obliged to have limbs amputated. As Members are aware, there are many more things which could happen if we fail to address this issue. Obesity was a matter of concern in America in the 1960s but it is now an epidemic there. The patterns which occurred in the US at that time are now being repeated in Britain and Ireland. We know what will be the outcome of this problem.

In the broader context of discussing health insurance, one of the ways in which we can promote health and secure funding is to focus on prevention. The latter is the cheapest way to ensure that the health service delivers on the commitment to ensure that people remain healthy and stay alive for as long as possible. That is a key issue. I propose that the Departments of Education and Skills, Transport, Tourism and Sport and Health, etc., should jointly establish a health promotion unit that would have the requisite powers and resources at its disposal to allow it to target the key issues with which we must deal, namely, smoking, alcohol abuse and childhood obesity.

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