Mary Henry (Independent)

While I agree with section 49, a real problem will emerge regarding internships due to the increased number of medical graduates. We have a responsibility to those doctors trained in Ireland to ensure there are enough internships to fulfil their qualifications necessary before they can be registered with the council. We cannot, as used to happen in the good old days as they were described, have people going to England to complete internships as that avenue is being closed. Has the Minister any thoughts on how we will fulfil these criteria? This year there will be an increase in the number of medical graduates. An awful bottleneck will be created with the reduction in the number of non-consultant hospital doctors and an increase in consultant-provided care.