Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Taoiseach for his reply. The reason I tabled the question is that a major report on private health insurance was issued by the Government on 26 December last. The one and only reason this was done, of course, was to try to bury it, and it would appear to me that was a clear policy decision. No Government which wants to respond to questions or wants to engage with the public on issues would publish a comprehensive and substantive report on such an important issue on St. Stephen's Day. It seems to be a clear and obvious abuse in itself.

As the Taoiseach knows, people had seen and are seeing massive increases in their insurance premiums, and tens of thousands of people over the last two years have dropped their insurance. Many have done so since the budget, and the Taoiseach will remember the very controversial decision that was taken in the budget two or three months before this report was published. In essence, the report painted a very stark picture of the future for health insurance in this country and essentially suggested it was coming very close to a tipping point in terms of its sustainability into the future.

Does the Taoiseach think it acceptable behaviour that the Minister should publish such an important report on St. Stephen's Day, knowing full well there would be no public discussion around it and that people would not have the facility or the capacity, given the day that was in it, to have the kind of serious debate the report warranted on its publication? In recent weeks we have had the publication of the universal health insurance document, with all of its lack of detail. It raises more questions than it answers and, again, it states that more legal and policy analysis has to be undertaken on the key issue of the market rate, despite the fact it is a White Paper. There is no detail in that paper as to the cost and pricing package that people will have to endure.

Given the Government's track record on health, and that of the Minister in particular, it seems to me the whole agenda, from the publication of that report on St. Stephen's Day, has been to avoid public debate on these issues and to delay substantive and penetrative debate where we get real answers. In particular, the publication of that report on St. Stephen's Day is an illustration of how far this Government goes to talk itself up when it wants to, but also to hide the unpalatable when it wants to. Publishing a major report on St. Stephen's Day was a new milestone in this regard. Would the Taoiseach accept that?

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