Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle, the Taoiseach and party leaders for their very kind good wishes for Deputy Catherine Murphy and me. We very much appreciate them.

I want to return to an issue I raised with the Taoiseach last month, that is, changes in Revenue's rules about the taxation of GP income, which very much affect GP charities. I am thinking, in particular, of a charity run by Dr. Austin O'Carroll called GPCareForAll. The Minister beside the Taoiseach, Deputy Donohoe, will be very familiar with the terrific service that charity operates out of Summerhill Primary Care Centre. It is about to set up a similar service in Finglas, an area that is very much bereft of proper GP services. These are services for the most marginalised communities, communities in which other GPs are not, in the main, particularly interested in operating. There were interim arrangements that allowed for the charities to operate as partnerships. Changes since last January have prevented this and will render these two essential services non-viable. Revenue has not done anything about this and I do not believe it fully appreciates the detail of it. I ask that the Taoiseach and the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, Deputy Donohoe, intervene in this because the charities will have to pull out very soon unless action is taken.

See this speech in context