Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Next week, the Labour Party will table a motion on the crisis in healthcare for patients and staff. Throughout the country, trade unions representing healthcare workers are holding lunchtime protests because the new de facto recruitment embargo is leaving vital positions unfilled and, therefore, putting patient safety at risk. It is taking up to a year to fill vacancies and when someone retires or leaves for another position, or takes leave, such as maternity leave, his or her position is not ring-fenced for backfilling. Clinical managers have no local autonomy to fill such vacancies and have to compete with all other requests in regional health areas. The INMO is balloting for industrial action, we are seeing key nursing posts being left vacant, and SIPTU has highlighted that the staffing crisis is causing delays in essential treatments. Thousands of positions were abolished because of the previous embargo, while the HSE spent €650 million last year on agency staff, which is 3% of the entire health budget. Will the Government lift the cap under the pay and numbers strategy and give local directors of nursing and midwifery sanction to recruit and fill posts so we can ensure safe staffing?

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