Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Workers and Unemployed Action Group) | Oireachtas source

-----from the briefing he gave to other Members of the House earlier this afternoon. He chose to exclude one third of the Opposition and I certainly hope it will never happen again.

My question is on the crisis in the health service. The Government has cut more than €3 billion and 12,500 staff from the health services in recent years. In 2014 a minimum of €619 million and another 2,600 staff will be cut. This is having a catastrophic effect on our services and the resulting crisis is being played out at local level throughout the country. South Tipperary General Hospital is a prime example. It has suffered the loss of more than 20% of its budget, or €11 million, in recent years and more than 100 staff. At the same time hospital activity and patient numbers have increased significantly and the hospital operates on a daily basis at 120% capacity. The number of patients waiting on trolleys and chairs in the emergency department of the hospital is absolutely unacceptable and is reminiscent of Third World conditions. Since the Government came to power, this democratic revolution Government about which the Taoiseach spoke, the number of trolleys and chairs increased from 750 in 2011 to 3,100 in 2013. Over the past weekend patients waited for days for admission. A total of 19 patients were still there on Monday, including a gentleman who had been there since the previous Wednesday and a lady who had been there since Friday evening.

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