Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 85: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the steps she has taken to ensure the publication of the Leas Cross report on deaths in Leas Cross by Professor O'Neill; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35755/06]

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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It has not been possible to publish the Leas Cross report to date because of legal difficulties regarding its current format. The Minister sought legal advice from the Attorney General and has requested the HSE, in accordance with that legal advice, to engage in a further process to overcome the legal obstacles that heretofore prevented the publication of the report. The HSE has entered into such a process and has informed the Department that it hopes to publish the report on or about 10 November 2006.

Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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It is vital that this report be published. Does the Minister of State agree it was his policy to place elderly people in any nursing home with no regard to the consequences or the level of care on offer? This is one of the core issues in the report. Does the Minister of State agree he is damned in this report, along with the Government and senior members of the HSE? His failure to publish this report gives the impression that it is a cover-up. It is important it is published for the sake of Ministers.

I have read the report and see no reason why it should not be published immediately. What are the legal matters that prevent its publication? There seems to be collusion between Ministers and senior members of the HSE to lie to the people. It is unbelievable that the Minister of State has implemented none of the recommendations of the report and that he has not commented on them. No legal matters prevent him from doing this.

How much did the former Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Martin, know about the situation in Leas Cross and other nursing homes over the past five years? Where are the senior staff of the HSE and former staff of the health boards and what do they have to say about this? They are not named in this report so no legal issues arise. The Minister of State need only worry about his own incompetence, which is scattered throughout the report. The report damns him for doing nothing over the past six years. The report states that Ministers of State were aware of what was occurring as far back as 2000. What briefing did the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Hanafin, receive in May 2005 as referred to in the report?

What was Mr. Aidan Browne, national director of primary, community and continuing care, referring to when he stated he received no complaints from the clinical staff of St. Ita's visiting Leas Cross? It seems a huge amount of correspondence was sent between one of the doctors in St. Ita's and the HSE regarding the problems in Leas Cross. Was this incompetence or a cover-up? People deserve to know what Ministers and senior staff in the HSE knew. Why are these people remaining so quiet? There are no legal matters to be considered and if there are, they should be explained. There is no reason why the recommendations of the report should not be published. The Minister of State should answer rather than hiding behind lawyers and the Attorney General.

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I am not sure what the appropriate reply is to the Deputy's question. He spoke before in this House about a cover-up when nothing could be further from the truth.

Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Has the Minister of State read the report?

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy should allow me to answer because he has raised several questions. No one on this side of the House ever attempted to try to cover up this report. Following the television programme about Leas Cross the Health Service Executive asked Professor Desmond O'Neill to write a report on the deaths of residents in Leas Cross. That has been completed but there are difficulties and the HSE was legally advised not to publish it in its present form.

The Minister and former Tánaiste asked the HSE to work on the difficulties in the report to ensure that it would be published. On or about 10 November, next week, the report will be published, yet the Deputy continues to talk about a cover-up. We were always anxious that it would be published. There is little point in my commenting on the details or contents of the report, or the difficulties therein until it is published.

We were surprised at what we saw on the programme on Leas Cross. The decision to go into a nursing home is a serious commitment for any family or individual to make. It is important that we give the individual certain guarantees on the type of care he or she will receive while there. The programme made it obvious that the system operating then was not appropriate to provide what is required and what older people deserve when they go into a nursing home. We have worked on those areas and have promised legislation on that which will be published before the end of the year. We have also drafted new standards. We have made progress in ensuring that older people receive the care they deserve when they enter nursing homes. We never intended to cover up what happened in Leas Cross. We are happy to publish the report and learn lessons from the mistakes made in Leas Cross.

Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Is the Minister of State saying that senior HSE staff did not pass on concerns raised with them regarding Leas Cross, or any similar institutions, in the past six years, to any Minister? Were the Ministers blissfully unaware of what was happening in nursing homes around the country? While that may not verge on negligence, it verges on incompetence. It is almost criminal in regard to the senior HSE staff involved. It will be important for the Minister of State, when publishing the report on 10 November, to make clear what everybody, particularly the political Executive, knew.

Ever since the former Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Martin, washed his hands of all responsibility for the health services, this hand-washing seems to be endemic in Ministers. How can the Minister of State expect us to believe that he will look after elderly people when he has postponed all the relevant legislation until after the next general election? The Minister of State should make clear when he publishes the report how much he and each of the Ministers in the Department knew because its comments on the senior HSE staff and the Ministers is damning.

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy said a few weeks ago that the report would never be published, now that I have given him a date for its publication he wants me to comment on it before then.

Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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We have been waiting too long for the Minister of State.

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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Following the programme on RTE about Leas Cross I immediately wrote to the Garda Commissioner asking him to examine it to see if there was a case to be answered. The HSE asked Professor Des O'Neill to prepare a report, which has been done. This report has been completed and will be published next week.

Leas Cross nursing home is no longer in operation and has been closed down. I do not want to frighten people into thinking that what happened in Leas Cross happens in every other nursing home. From my experience, most nursing homes make an honest effort to provide a high standard of care to their patients. It is important, however, that a proper scheme is put in place to ensure this happens in every nursing home and not just the majority.

The HSE has adopted a policy of working with nursing homes. Where there are difficulties, it encourages them to change their practices to achieve a high level of care. It may not have worked in all nursing homes, but it has worked in many. Through a process of communication and regular callbacks, high levels of care have been achieved as a result of the HSE's intervention.

The legislation covering this area will be published this year. It is our intention, with the support of the Opposition parties, to pass it as quickly as possible. It is not intended to put it back beyond the general election. The Government has shown its commitment to older people and treated their issues as a priority through increases in the old age pension and the provision of an extra €150 million in the last budget. That money was targeted in areas where it had real benefit to people through home care packages, meals on wheels and home helps, improving the quality of the lives of older people.