Frances Fitzgerald (Fine Gael)

On the question of achieving consensus on health policy, it is not a lack of support from the Opposition which has led to the problems in the health service. I remind Senators that the Minister for Health and Children and her two most recent predecessors, the Ministers for Finance and Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputies Cowen and Martin, respectively, belong to parties which have had a majority in the House for the past ten years, during which time they had control of the Department. Lack of Opposition support was not the reason the Minister was unable, as she informed the media the other day, to obtain information from the Health Service Executive. She has effectively admitted she cannot get satisfaction from the organisation she created or the manager she appointed. This sounds like a case of hands-off politics. Patients deserve more and if the Minister wants to put them first, she must find out what is going on in the health service. It is ridiculous to hear Government Senators imply this is a problem created by the Opposition. It does not speak to the facts as they emerged at a recent committee meeting.

When I spoke last week about two further women being diagnosed with breast cancer, little did I think we would hear about 97 more women a few hours later. Responsibility must be put on those responsible, which is what is being said in the Dáil. We must have accountability and someone must be accountable. We cannot have two parallel structures where one person, particularly the person meant to be in charge, does not know what is happening within the HSE. It was the Minister who created the HSE.