Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is completed and it was due to go before the Cabinet. The question is whether it is appropriate to bring it now or if it should wait for a new Government. I think it would be appropriate to bring it now. I will check that and come back to Deputy Shortall. I will meet with Mental Health Reform before we next meet. I am scheduled to meet Jigsaw as well. I think it is on next Thursday.

In response to the question on childcare, in the time available to me I can say that we have an in-reach childcare proposal. I hope that is something on the roadmap that will be published tomorrow that can be prioritised at the appropriate time so we can provide childcare, in the first instance, for healthcare workers and then for other professionals.

On the enhanced nurse contract, I gave the figure of 700 that signed up in February and now it is 3,400. I have been very clear to the HSE. I will consider issuing a directive but I have been clear that I want that to increase.

To respond to the question of allowing nurses to graduate early, this is something that I was very sympathetic to, but when I looked at the working group that had been set up that had student nurses on it, as well as the colleges and the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, NMBI, on it, on balance, it came down against it. I will share the information with Deputy Shortall and I am happy to engage with her offline on it.

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