Liam Twomey (Fine Gael)

The Minister has. It does good to review constantly the political aspects of NAMA. The NAMA project has the potential to cost the same amount as the HSE spends in the lifetime of an average Government. In its five-year history, the HSE, with its excessive secrecy, chronic lack of information, lack of accountability to the Oireachtas and desperate policy decisions, has lost the complete confidence of the Irish people. In reading the debate on NAMA in the lower House, I have read words like accountability, transparency and corporate governance. I clearly remember those words used when I was the Opposition spokesperson on health and children when we debated the establishment of the HSE with the Minister, Deputy Harney. In fact, the Minister, Deputy Lenihan, was a junior Minister in that same Department when we debated that legislation.

Sadly, the words most often used in public discussion about the HSE are incompetence, negligence and criminal.