Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The population is growing and our older people are living longer which is fantastic but there is cause for alarm as waiting lists are starting to creep back up and we are short of professional people. Other countries are coming to Ireland to try to take them away. We have to do something to keep them here. As I said, the Defence Forces are at their lowest numbers ever. Trying to get people to care for elderly people at home is difficult. There is something wrong there and the HSE will not engage them. They are having trouble with travel times. Then there are our firefighters. The last thing anyone wants is to have a fire in their house and wonder what they are going to do. Half of them were out on strike recently and there is a reason for that. There is a lot of public support for them. The Government has done a good enough job over the past 12 years but it is important that it does not take its foot off the pedal. I am saying to the Minister, who has responsibility for public expenditure, that these are areas where we are having problems. Older people need a better health system. If they get sick they need to go to a hospital or doctor. The GP situation is very alarming. We do a fantastic job of training people in our public service professions. It is important that we keep them in the country.

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