Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I dtosach báire, ba mhaith liom tacú leis an nglaoch atá déanta ag an Seanadóir Ó Donnabháin maidir le díospóireacht ar chúrsaí iascaireachta. A debate on fishing, which the Leader previously promised to facilitate, is long overdue. I am aware that the Minister is open to such a debate and I take this opportunity to request that it take place.

Senator Mullen referred to the presence of Members in the Chamber for a particular vote last evening. From time to time people are not able to be present in the House, either for obvious reasons or as a result of circumstances beyond their control. It was very opportunistic on the part of Senator Mullen - it was also very unlike him - to make a fairly personalised attack on one of the Senators from my party. I categorically do not accept the charge he made. For someone who often states that he is above politics, the Senator appears to becoming very political all of a sudden. There must be a European election in the offing.

It has long been Sinn Féin policy to work towards the creation of a universal health system. We would certainly like to see the development of a public system which would facilitate all patients and deal with them equally. It is also stated Government policy to work towards that goal. However, we all know the health system is creaking at the seams as a result of the enormous pressure under which it is operating. We are a long way away from witnessing the creation of the ideal in this regard. We have been informed that the HSE plan, which had been deferred, is to be issued tomorrow. Will the Leader clarify whether this will indeed happen tomorrow as planned? If it does happen, will the Leader ensure that at debate takes place on the plan as soon as possible, in light of the serious implications for everyone involved? If the plan is not issued tomorrow and if its publication is again deferred, what will that tell us about how the health system is being managed, the current state of the Department and where the axe will fall in the context of the €666 million in cuts which must be made? Yesterday's announcement to the effect that people with private health insurance are going to be obliged to pay additional fees took many Government Senators by surprise. This matter was certainly not mentioned when the budget and the various cuts to health service funding were being introduced. This development is going to compound the problems being experienced. The health service is creaking at the seams and people can no longer take the pressure. It is important, therefore, that the House engage in a debate on this matter, as early as next week if possible.