Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy and fully agree with the sentiment that these are valued and essential healthcare workers in our system. It is why in the lifetime of this Government we have had an unprecedented increase in management and administrative grades. The Deputy will be aware that the management and administrative workforce has gone from 18,000 to 24,000 in the lifetime of this Government. We have invested at a level that has never before been seen. When all of those funded posts were filled, as is the case with every school and Garda station, and as is the case here in the Oireachtas and with every employer in the country, we had to stop hiring because there was no more funding. The same applies to medical and nursing grades, and for health and social care professionals. It is no different from a school principal hiring the number of administrators they can hire and when they have done so, not being able to hire any more. I must say that after the unprecedented level of investment, and when we did nothing other than stop hiring once the funded posts were filled, it is disappointing to see this response.

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