Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

It is an issue right around the country. Earlier this year, as well as during the Covid pandemic, the Government agreed incredible planned increases in staff within our hospitals and healthcare systems. Many of those have been delivered but we are still waiting on other positions to be filled. It is proving difficult. There are skills shortages in our country, which are not helped by the restrictions on travel that Covid has brought. This is not because of a lack of budget or a lack of will. What is happening in Nenagh is a very good example of the difficulty in finding people to fill those positions. I ask the Deputy to provide me with details and I will check with the Minister for Health if there are any reasons this has been delayed other than a shortage of suitable applicants coming forward. If there is any other obstacle, we will have to address it.

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