Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Tá dhá cheist agam, ceann amháin faoin public sector standards Bill agus ceann eile faoin Health Act 2007. Yesterday the Government agreed to publish the draft general scheme of the public sector standards Bill, which is intended to replace the Standards in Public Office Commission. It is a very belated response to the recommendations made by the Mahon and Moriarty tribunals, one in 2011 and the other in 2012. It has taken three years to produce the draft scheme of this Bill, which will now go into consultation until September. When does the Taoiseach expect the Bill to be published? Realistically, does he believe there is any hope of it being passed into law before the next general election?

On the Health Act 2007, the Minister for Health has finally instructed his officials to draw up the heads of a Bill to give new powers to HIQA. I welcome this, but it is four months after he announced this. However, we know that HIQA's recommendations are often ignored by the Minister and the Department. HIQA has said that had its recommendations been implemented, the risks to emergency departments, which even today dominate the front page of the Irish Independent, would have been significantly reduced. The INMO has said that May was the worst month on record for patients on trolleys. We had the disgraceful sight of two elderly patients, both of them born before the 1916 Rising-----

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