Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

The Minister did not indicate when he intends to sign off on the plan. He indicated it would be laid before both Houses but he did not confirm, as my question sought, that it would come before the House for debate, and there is a stark difference. Does the Minister not accept that no matter what service plan he signs off on, the fact of the matter is that we will face significantly reduced services in the course of 2012, consequent on the cuts that the Government imposed in budget 2012? The situation that has to be faced by patients throughout the State is a very serious one. We have already seen the consequences of cuts imposed by the former Government over a series of years under its administration and we know the impact that has had on the lives of ordinary people. What we will face with cuts of some €850 million, signalled for the 12 month period under budget 2012, is an ever-deepening crisis.

The Minister's reconsideration of the service plan is interesting in itself given that the Secretary General of the Department of Health is also the chairperson of the interim board of the HSE, so it is hardly a case of the dog wagging the tail, or which way is it at present? Who is in control? Could it be that the Minister and his officials had little or no input into something that presented on the eve of Christmas Eve, just gone by?

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