Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I might broaden it out because, obviously, we are aware of the same issue.

There seems to be an issue as regards recruitment. I pointed out last week that there are 200 fewer permanent nurses in the system than before Covid and there are 1,800 more temporary or contract nurses. We also have issues with contact tracing and with nurses in the community, as pointed out by two previous speakers. There is a commitment, however, to 8,500 new healthcare professionals to be recruited by the end of this year, 12,500 by the end of the HSE winter plan in April, and 16,000 by the end of next year. There have to be issues beyond just the recruitment process of the HSE to be fair to it. What are the issues? I represent the constituency that has the Garda vetting unit and I do not believe it is a vetting issue. What are the issues across the board with recruitment that are causing these blockages? We must call a spade a spade. Are we really going to have 8,500 healthcare professionals recruited by the end of the year, 12,500 by April and 16,000 by the end of next year?

See this speech in context