Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Could I comment briefly on the proposed legislation on the X case? It is important to realise that the comments that have been made recently about the requirement for six consultants is not a practical proposal. I do not think it was ever on the table. It is amazing how speculation can go wild on occasion. Of the 18 maternity hospitals, 11 of them have only three obstetricians, which means there is only one obstetrician on-call at the weekend. That was evidenced recently in a case in Waterford when all three obstetricians were on holidays at the one time and a locum was dealing with a case involving an unfortunate end result. That gives an indication of the pressures that are on maternity hospitals around the country at the moment.

In 2003 the Hanly report clearly set out that by 2012 we would have a total of 3,600 consultants in this country. As of today there are 2,500. We are 1,100 off the target. The need for consultants applies very much in maternity hospitals around the country, especially in smaller three-consultant units. People need to take that into account in the context of the impracticality of the speculation. The alleged proposal was never on the table and it is purely wild speculation.

I wish to touch on one other issue, namely, the animal fodder shortage. I thank the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for the work he is doing in this area. He has made €1 million available to help with the transport of fodder from England to this country, making it cheaper for farmers to avail of it. It is also important to realise that the Minister and his Department have been working hard to deal with the issue in recent months. It is not yesterday or today that they are responding to it. The Minister is meeting with the CEOs of all the co-operatives this morning and with the banks. It is important that he or a Minister of State would come to the House to outline the results of the consultations so that people are kept fully informed and that there is not unnecessary alarm. The Government is responding.