Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Taoiseach's loyalty to the Minister is commendable, but he must know in his heart of hearts that his stewardship of the Department of Health has been an unmitigated disaster for citizens. Two issues emerge from the latest U-turn. One relates to citizens with long-term illnesses who have been let down by the Government, while the other relates to how the Dáil comes to hear about these matters. Teachta Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin has regularly asked the Minister about this issue, as have others. I have asked the Taoiseach about it numerous times in the past two years and he has told me that it is just a matter of time, that it will happen very soon. It is not credible that it took two years to discover these legal difficulties. What are the difficulties? We heard yesterday about the thousands of patients waiting four years for outpatient appointments. The issue of free GP care was the subject of a separate commitment from the Labour Party and Fine Gael before they even got to the programme for Government. It has been axed. People have been on waiting lists for four years. Clearly, there is an issue with the Minister. The Taoiseach clearly promised a universal, single-tier health service, guaranteeing access to medical care based on need. The cornerstone of that commitment was free GP care. Instead, we have a continuation of the two-tier system the Government inherited from Fianna Fáil. The Government has not even got past the first step in meeting this commitment to have a single-tier, universal health service. I understand the Minister of State is not answerable to the Dáil. It is the Minister for Health's responsibility. Will the Taoiseach spell out the steps he will take between now and the time people will have a chance to vote again to look after citizens with long-term illnesses and others who are in the high tech drug scheme and dependent on this type of support from the State? We should not have to wait to read about it in the newspapers. He should spell out now what steps the Government will take. As the Cabinet sub-committee on health dealt with this issue, it is a governmental responsibility. The Taoiseach is bound to know what steps he has in mind. Therefore, he should tell us.

See this speech in context