Results 30,701-30,720 of 46,456 for speaker:Simon Harris

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: Before dealing with the timeline, I will finish dealing with the costs because I do not want to conflate the two. On the costs, my views are exactly as outlined by Fred Barry when he last came before this committee, namely, there are some issues of risk outside the GNP process - that is not new and that has been said many times - and the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board has to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I have not been advised of them either.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: It is important for me to say that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: Sure. I just need to be clear that I have not been advised of a change in the timelines for the construction by 2022 or the opening in 2023. The only cost issues I have been advised of are the same ones of which the chairman of the board advised the committee on 12 June, namely, that developers can submit claims as they go along, and, as the chief executive officer has rightly said, those...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: It was.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I have seen that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I will respond first and then Mr. Reid will comment. I appreciate Deputy Kelly saying that he does not want to make this political and that he has made it a plea for the mid-west. In the interests of fairness I want to note that Senators Maria Byrne and Kieran O'Donnell and Deputy Michael Harty, who also represent the region, are here. This is a massive issue for the people of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I appreciate Senator Burke's ongoing interest in this area. As I said earlier, I accept that there are serious recruitment and retention issues in the health service, which are particularly acute when it comes to the issue of consultants. That is not just my view. We specifically asked the Public Sector Pay Commission to examine the issue and it acknowledged that there were recruitment and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: It is not a case of liking it or not liking it. I am entirely neutral on what representative body a doctor decides to join. I represent people, as does Senator Burke. My job is to deliver a reform agenda for the health service, and consultants are crucial to this with regard to paying them a decent wage, addressing issues of pay parity, and engaging on the reform agenda. There should be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: Just let me-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: To be helpful, no one-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I will try again to be very clear because I do not want-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: There will not be engagement in the next two to three days. To be very clear to Senator Burke, the position of the Government is that we will put in place a budget to deal with a no-deal Brexit that could take place as early as the end of this month.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: The priority of everybody in the Government and the Department is to ensure we have a settlement for the health service that the Minister for Finance can deliver in the Dáil on Tuesday. This is the first priority. When the budget is concluded on Tuesday, the Department of Health, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the HSE will begin engaging with consultants. In the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: These decisions involve me but they also involve my colleagues in the Department. To be helpful, I absolutely see a role for the IHCA and I take fully the point made by the Senator. I want it to be engaged. There are many excellent representatives in the organisation. They are very sincere and want to make a difference. In case I did not say it clearly enough, I hope and expect that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I thank Senator Burke who has been on the case about the need for an elective hospital and better capacity in Cork for some time. We have included the project in the capital plan but the Senator is rightly putting us under pressure to make sure that the preparatory work, in terms of sites and so on, is done quickly so that we do not have a gulf between now and the significant capital coming...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: If Deputy Durkan has difficulty using his 12 minutes, I am happy to give longer answers if that will assist, but I do not think he will. Deputy Durkan is right to raise the issue of the health budget. There is a number of parts to the answer. First, we must be honest about the fact that the Oireachtas makes decisions outside of budget time. The Oireachtas rightly decided this year that we...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for highlighting two important areas. With regard to speech and language therapy, I am pleased that in this year's budget, we provided funding for 100 additional therapy posts across the country. That was a big ask of the Minister, Deputy Finian McGrath. Deputy Murphy-O'Mahony also highlighted the need for these 100 additional posts, which I acknowledge. I am informed...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I will ask my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Daly, to comment on this in a moment. The Deputy probably will not mind as much if he comments on it now, in light of his recent political decision.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Meeting on Health Issues: Discussion (2 Oct 2019)

Simon Harris: I am very sad about his decision but the Deputy may be very happy about it. As the Deputy knows, the Minister of State has taken an active interest and has led for me on this issue because he is a representative of the constituency. Deputy Murphy O'Mahony has rightly continued to highlight this issue and I thank her for doing so. I will answer with regard to the national children's...