Marie Louise O'Donnell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I assume it is acceptable to say that several persons of note from various medical fields, including GP and consultancy practice, took part in a radio discussion this morning. What they said would leave the hair standing on the back of one's head. They spoke about newly qualified doctors, consultant doctors, and the Government's obligation to taxpayers and how it is not standing up on quality as opposed to economy. We have had this problem before of putting economy before quality. The speakers referred to Irish consultants not being able to come home or, where they do return, being unable to work in private practice. They might as well be taxi drivers after 5 p.m. The contributors spoke about newly qualified Irish doctors fleeing this country in droves for Australia, Canada and elsewhere because they cannot get proper work here or become established on a career trajectory. They referred to people applying for consultancy jobs in this country who would not get on an interview list under normal circumstances and those posts being left vacant.

I am not saying anything new in referring to this radio discussion. My colleague, Senator Colm Burke, has been raising these issues for months, as has the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children. Will the Leader ask the Minister for Health to come to the House to answer some of our questions? We saw what happened in education when the views of teachers in classrooms were ignored. Some 53% of them told the Minister for Education and Skills that his proposals for junior certificate reform, particularly the teacher evaluation aspect, would not work, but he did not listen. The Minister for Health must listen to what people are saying to him or we will see the same debacle in the health service, including the potential for industrial action, that is happening in education. He must answer questions such as why we, as taxpayers, are paying thousands to train excellent doctors.

What are they doing? They are waiting for the airplane to leave the country.