Colm Burke (Fine Gael)

I do. If we are having a debate on health care, we must also examine the issues of value for money and the cost of absenteeism. Absenteeism among the medical profession, wherein some people work 60 to 70 hours per week, is less than 1% whereas the level is as high as 5.7% among management and general support staff. These figures do not add up. It is about time we held a serious debate on the issue. People are getting full pay while on sick leave. No changes have been made despite the restricted funds we have available for health care. We need to get value for money. Although some people are sick or have genuine reasons for being absent-----