Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I raise with the Tánaiste two issues regarding the health service, namely, the ongoing and now permanent crisis in the service and the implementation of the all-party Oireachtas report, Sláintecare. As we enter another winter period, the flaws in the public health services are being cruelly exposed. If there is a flu epidemic, the situation will be catastrophic. The Tánaiste will quote figures on extra funding, in particular, €2.9 billion for capital investment on infrastructure, additional beds, equipment and mental health over a ten-year period. I put it to him that this is not a solution but a sticking plaster which, given demographic factors, will barely maintain existing levels of care. This level of investment was called for in the Oireachtas report but was crucially linked to a €3 billion special fund to deliver Sláintecare over a six-year period. There was no mention of this special implementation fund in the health budgets of 2018 or 2019. A mere €20 million has been allocated for 2019 to be ring-fenced for the Sláintecare implementation programme. I put it to the Tánaiste that despite statements to the contrary and notwithstanding the appointment of Ms Laura Magahy, a capable health professional, to oversee the implementation programme, officials at a high level in the Department of Health are in charge of the process and will ensure that Sláintecare, if not quietly parked, will never be implemented as envisioned in the all-party report.

Actions speak louder than words. The Government's Sláintecare implementation strategy outlined earlier this year, while making all the right noises, is a step back from the Oireachtas report in terms of timelines and funding. There is no commitment to universal access. Expanding eligibility still involves means-testing, which is the opposite of universal access. The Government either does not understand what universalism is or does not want to understand it.

Does the Tánaiste agree that there is simply no political commitment or funding for Sláintecare, which will mean the continuation of a broken system that is not fit for purpose and fails to deliver the service the people deserve? It will also mean the continuation of the enormously stressful and poor working conditions experienced by those who work in the health service, particularly the front-line staff who were referred to earlier.

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