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

Waiting lists are far too high. That was the case before the pandemic and they have got considerably worse as a result of the pandemic and the cyberattack. We need to turn the tide in that regard and ensure those waiting lists and waiting times improve over the next couple of years. I absolutely agree that we need to look at the regional disparities. There will always be regional disparities to a certain extent but there should not be gross regional disparities where people in one part of the country have to wait much longer than people in other parts. We will have to take that into account.

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