Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I very much appreciate the reply. It is specifically the Minister, Deputy Reilly's, area. I am still at a loss as to how we can offer two-year contracts to persons outside this country and we cannot get information about what two-year contracts are in existence with Irish graduates. I am at a loss as to how we can offer two-year contracts in this way when we cannot do the same with junior doctors.

On the 80% who are on training courses, I accept they are on training programmes but their contracts are still only six-months or 12-month contracts where it is not structured. They are on training programmes under the various different training colleges, but it is not structured. The specialist registrar programme is structured, but for those who are SHOs it is not structured. This is the reason we will lose a significant number of junior doctors over the next 12 months to two years. We must change the system.

We now face a situation where there is an added problem in that the number of those applying for consultant posts in Ireland has dropped, from an average of eight applicants per job to an average of two applicants per job, and this is a contributing factor. I ask that the Department would deal with this as a priority. I do not accept the answers being given to us by the HSE.