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

I was wrong in the way I went about it. I should have done it differently. I should have brought Dr. Ó Tuathail in and given a full briefing, even if it was line by line or page by page. That is the way it should have been done. I did not do it that way because I knew him and, almost as a shortcut, I did it in the way I did it. I should not have done it that way. I should have set aside an hour or two to do it in a more formal and proper way. I absolutely accept that was an error of judgment. It was a mistake on my part not to do it in that way. Had I done it that way, I think we would not be here today.

In the text exchanges to which the Deputy referred - again, I do not know if they are real as they are not from me - I believe I am also accused of being an IMO head, being a former member of the IMO. On one level, the Deputy is using the texts as evidence to accuse me of helping out the NAGP but on another level the texts accuse me of being an IMO head and somebody who is trying to help out the IMO. It cannot be the two. Yes, of course my motivation was to get the agreement ratified. I put a lot of work into the agreement. I do not think it would have happened had it not been for the fact that I was Taoiseach and prioritised it. The Department of Health wanted to do a whole new contract, starting from scratch, which would have taken far longer to negotiate. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform had real concerns that this would kick off demands from other unions and sectors for FEMPI reversal. I pushed to get the agreement across the line. I wanted it done.

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