Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

What I am clear about is that the budget is there to increase nursing numbers by 1,000 in 2017. That is what we funded for in the budget. How that is done is now a matter for the HSE in its operational plan. I am also clear that recruitment and retention of nurses is a key issue that needs to be resolved. I hear many doctors going on the radio saying that if one wants to end trolleys in emergency departments - which we have all wanted to do for decades, yet successive governments have failed to do it - we need more beds. I agree that we need more beds. It is not much good having the beds if they are closed because there are not enough nurses and other staff to open them.

There are 105 beds closed in the health service today due to staffing shortages. I fully accept that bed capacity and the ability to open extra beds is linked to the recruitment and retention of nurses, which in turn is linked to easing pressures on our emergency departments. That is why we have provided funding for 1,000 new nurses this year. It is a matter for the HSE to allocate how it wishes to do that. That is why we are actively involved today in discussions with the INMO and SIPTU. I will keep the House abreast of those discussions.

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