Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party) | Oireachtas source

We are facing not just a mishap or a misunderstanding but a national scandal that strikes at the heart of the public trust and exposes yet again the rotten foundation of the Government management of the health service. Innocent, vulnerable, trusting children were subjected to unnecessary surgeries. This is not a statistic; lives and futures have been irreversibly damaged under the supposed guardianship of this State. As this unfolded, the Government was yet again asleep at the wheel, blind to the warning signs and deaf to the cries of parents who dared to question the system. This Government's response has been shameful, slow, evasive and dripping of the cowardice of those more concerned with covering their own backs than defending the welfare of children. The truth is hard but clear - this Government cannot manage, supervise or protect the health of those who need it most. When the health service descends into negligence and children's lives are treated with reckless indifference, more than just reviews are needed. The full board must resign. We must stop the spin and start the sacking. The excuses must stop and there must be consequences.

We are governed by men and women who will move heaven and earth to save their reputations but who will do nothing when it comes to the suffering of innocent children. That is a hallmark of successive Governments that have grown bloated, tired and indifferent to the people they have been elected to serve. We need a health service where patients come before bureaucracy, where accountability is real and where failures are not rewarded by promotion but punished by removals. Our children deserve a health service built on care, not yet another cover-up. The people of Ireland deserve leadership built on courage and not cowardice. This Government again stands condemned for its incompetence, and not just that but by its indifference to the people it serves.

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