Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. The drop is symbolic of resourcing issues in County Meath, which has one of the largest populations in the country but ranks the lowest when it comes to funding across a range of Departments, whether it is with regard to health, policing or housing. I have just come from a meeting of the Committee of Public Accounts where a departmental Secretary General has told us we have the lowest spend per capitain local government with just €522 per person as opposed to €1,400 per person in the city of Dublin.

The Minister of State and the Minister are aware of the campaign to save Navan hospital, and the promise made in 2011 of a regional hospital in Meath, which has disappeared off the books. Cabinet members have now admitted it is a dead duck. Last week, my local newspaper, the Meath Chronicle, had an article stating GP practices in my home town of Navan are turning away people because they have no space. In a town of 36,000 people, GP practices are turning people away from their doors. There is a real issue when it comes to centres such as Meath and commuter counties which have big populations but are not keeping track with the type of services that people in larger counties require. This particular reduction in home help hours is symbolic of a wider problem in a county such as Meath.

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