Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I refer to the Taoiseach's comments on Tuesday and, also, to the programme for Government commitment to building capacity in our emergency and acute services. Rostering is not the problem in regard to Christmas and the New Year in our health service. The Taoiseach, in suggesting that those who have remained to work in our health service are reducing their commitment over Christmas and the New Year by taking their annual leave entitlements, missed the target. His target should have been the Department of Health and the HSE because accident and emergency overcrowding occurs all year round. For example, yesterday - two months before Christmas - there were 591 people on trolleys. Last year, there were 714 people on trolleys two months after Christmas. The problems in regard to our health services are in plain sight. The solutions are also in plain sight. When will funding be provided for the transformation of our health service, which must be over and above the normal allocation. Extra funding must be provided for transformation.

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