Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I understand the budget will come in on target, we will wait and see at the end of the year. I also understand that the provision being made this year for a €900 million increase will allow the HSE to develop a service plan, soon to be available to Members, that will show significant improvement in service across the board. The plan will be monitored very closely to make sure that it too comes in on budget and delivers the improvements. It will include the employment of 1,200 extra people at the front line. There are already 92 primary cares centres and the plan includes a continued roll-out, with 30 more under construction and moving into place. That is the sort of long-term reform that would take pressure off the hospitals, see more patients treated within their own communities and have more access to home care support, which is the kind of environment in which people want to be treated. There is a real direction of reform but it will take time. I agree with Deputy McGrath that we have to monitor carefully that the money we put in delivers the results. One could see, from the Ministers for Health and for Public Expenditure and Reform a very clear commitment that the monitoring will occur in the next 12 months and we will expect to see value for the money that we ask the taxpayer to put in.

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