Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Let us know exactly the truth of all of that. The Minister made the point on Pat Kenny's radio show this morning that he spoke to senior Labour Ministers. That is very clearly what he said. In response to an earlier question, the Minister named the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Howlin, but to whom else did he speak among the senior Labour Ministers? What did he advise them and what detail did he share with them? Did he advise the Minister, Deputy Howlin, or any of his Labour Party colleagues that he had not and would not go to further deliberate on these selections with the then Minister of State with responsibility for primary care, Deputy Shortall?

It is hard to be able to follow how the switching can be so easily accommodated. There is a mighty difference between a lease arrangement and some of the other possible methods, including PPP. There are a number of real difficulties in being able to square all that the Minister has indicated. The whole thing suggests it was a cobbled together exercise in order to accommodate a predisposed agenda on the Minister's part.

I asked the Minister about further locations for development by Exchequer funding, and some of these are referred to in this morning's The Irish Times. Would the Minister like to give us further detail in relation to those and whether the suggested number of eight would be a further eight already determined by the Minister, and that these would be in addition to the 35 we have been addressing over a number of days? It is time the Minister took the opportunity to put on the record of the House the real position that existed at the helm of the health Department while the former Minister of State, Deputy Shortall, had responsibility for primary care.

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