Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 4 to 12 together.

Cabinet committee E last met on 11 April 2018. The next meeting of the Cabinet committee has not yet been scheduled. In addition to the meetings of the full Cabinet and of Cabinet committees, I meet with Ministers on an individual basis regularly to focus on particular issues. In this regard I meet regularly with the Minister for Health, Deputy Harris, to discuss issues related to our health service, including last week.

Support for Cabinet committee E is provided by the social policy and public service reform division of my Department. The Minister for Health has primary responsibility for the preparation of documents relating to health policy. Government is committed to enhancing the quality of the health system. This year has seen the highest ever level of health funding in the history of our country and the Government has also allocated significant capital funding of almost €11 billion for health over the past ten years. That is double what was provided for the previous ten years. This is investment in new buildings, equipment and ICT.

However, in order to ensure meaningful and sustained improvements in the health service we also need to deliver a major programme of reform. Important milestones have been reached in recent months. The Minister for Health launched the Sláintecare implementation strategy in August. This provides the framework within which a new system-wide reform programme can be advanced. The new programme office has been established and is now led by Laura Magahy and a Sláintecare advisory council has been established, which will be chaired by Dr. Tom Keane who led the reform of the cancer services in Ireland some years ago. The new structures will support and drive the implementation of the reform programme. Work is also under way to establish a new HSE board to strengthen the management, governance and accountability of the executive. Ciarán Devane has recently been nominated as chairperson designate of the HSE. He is chief executive of the British Council and was a chief executive of the UK health charity, Macmillan Cancer Support. He is also a former member of the board of the National Health Service England.

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