Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas. Because this motion is about priorities, I was reminded today that since my election for the first time to this House in February 2020, on three different occasions I have had to sign a form to tell the Houses of the Oireachtas that I was not accepting a pay rise that I had never asked for and that I did not need. On the same number of occasions, three times, this House has debated motions in respect of providing proper remuneration for our student nurses and midwives and on three occasions the Government has failed to act.

This Chamber clapped in unison at the height of the pandemic in recognition, in solidarity and in appreciation of our frontline workers. Actions, however, speak louder than words. The actions that needed to follow were that we recognised that the pandemic, above all else, exposed deficiencies which go to the core of our health services. Unfortunately, rather than the pandemic being used as a vehicle to undo those deficiencies, it is now the excuse for those deficiencies remaining in place.

When we talk about the difficulties in capacity, the pandemic is the reason, despite the fact that in the Minister's budget this year there was not a single additional acute hospital or community bed delivered above what had already been committed to, which is approximately one half of the intensive care unit, ICU, beds that are actually required. Nothing from the Minister's party, since the Minister has taken over this Department, has been provided for the rebuilding of our smaller hospitals such as Monaghan Hospital, despite pre-election commitments from his party that he would ensure that that would be the case. To my mind, the very fact that we are again debating a motion in respect of our student nurses and midwives shows me that the Government has still not got that issue sorted on behalf of those people who stood by us through some of our darkest days. This tells me quite clearly that what is needed here is not just a shift in policy emphasis but a change in government.

I firmly believe that these issues will only be adequately addressed when we have someone such as Deputy Cullinane in the Minister's office. I commend the motion to the House.

See this speech in context