Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

First, ní aontaím go hiomlán leis an Teachta. Ní dóigh liom go bhfuil an méid atá ráite aige cruinn maidir leis an méid daoine atá ag obair sna seirbhísí sláinte, go háirithe agus an méid banaltraí ag dul in airde. Is é fianaise an scéil go bhfuil i bhfad níos mó daoine ag obair anois sna seirbhísí ná mar a bhí anuraidh agus an bhliain roimhe sin.

In the first instance, I will deal with the so-called embargo that is being touted about the place. We now have 9,614 more nurses and midwives working in our health service than we did in December 2019. A 2023 OECD report shows that Ireland has the second-highest number of practising nurses per 1,000 head of population among the reported European Union countries. We are second only to Finland. Over the last three years, we have increased the number of undergraduate education places for nurses and midwives by nearly 600 places. For the 2023-24 year, there are more than 200 additional places in higher education institutions in the Republic. Moreover, in 2023, there was a once-off arrangement for approximately 130 students to study in Northern Ireland. We are committed to doubling nursing and midwifery undergraduate education places over the next five to eight years.

The hiring of graduate nurses, qualified nurses and midwives committed to and coming through the international recruitment pipeline, ED, ICU, maternity and community nurses are all exempt from the recruitment pause. Recruitment of nurses has continued. An additional net 3,168 nurses and midwives have been recruited since May of last year. Overall, in terms of the broader health service, 28,500 more staff are now working in our health service than were there at the beginning of 2020. These are very substantial increases.

I make the further point to the Deputy, who is his party's finance spokesperson, that the level of expenditure in health continues to grow apace. The figures in the first three to four months of the year show a significant increase in expenditure, even above profile. It is significantly above profile, which means that spending is continuing within the health services, mainly in the areas of acute and trauma services. That is the reality. There was a very substantial increase in health spending in the first three to four months of this year. It is substantial in its own right because of the budget, but even ahead of what was profiled in the budget, we are looking at very substantial increases in health expenditure. More than €7.5 billion extra has been allocated to the health service over the past four years.

To be fair, the waiting lists are coming down. Additional services across the health service have been provided as a result of that, both in primary care community services and in the acute hospital sector.

About 4,200 extra health and social care professionals have been recruited over and above what we had in 2020 and about 3,000 extra doctors and dentists have been recruited. Across the health service, there has been a very significant increase in people employed. We need to focus on whether deployment correlates with outcomes in certain areas.

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