James Reilly (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The leader of the Sinn Féin group raised our current difficulties in the health service and we are all aware we need more capacity. We are now fortunate as a nation to have additional funds for the health service. However, there must be acknowledgement from people that having had so many cuts and the reality of the troika in town, which was checking reports every three months and was not prepared to write the cheque for the following three months if the report did not come in as expected, we have much ground to make up. One cannot possibly hope, within a couple of years, to restore our service on the basis of getting back to an OECD average when there were so many years in which we were so far behind.

Beds are of course an issue but reform is equally important. We must move away from an illness-based health service towards prevention and early intervention. That means there should be a new GP contract and restoration of the cuts made on foot of the financial emergency measures in the public interest legislation. Everybody experienced those but they have not been reversed at all in general practice, which is having a very negative effect. We also need more access to diagnostics for GPs. I want to be able to look after my patients by ordering an X-ray or ultrasound so as to manage the problem without them ever having to go to hospital, if possible. We need more home help and day hospitals, where people can be absolutely assured that a procedure will take place because the bed would not be occupied from the night before. There is a wonderful opportunity for outpatient follow-up to be carried out in the community, nearer patients.

There are many other matters that could be addressed but I will not get into them because I wish to raise an issue I have raised a number of times before. It is the anomaly in the pension system brought about by previously passed legislation.The anomaly has resulted in upwards of 36,000 pensioners being discriminated against, many of whom are women who took time out of work to raise children, who are the future of our nation, or looked after loved ones who otherwise would have ended up in State care thus costing the State considerable sums of money. Not alone have they lost out by giving this service that was born out of love, they are now being penalised for saving the State money.

I am very much encouraged by what the Minister for Employment and Social Affairs has said and hope that she will bring this issue to Cabinet this week. I also hope, arising from that, restoration will be made immediately in terms of current pay and that the back pay issue can be resolved over a slightly longer period. It is important to remember that for many of these people, who are mainly women, time is not on their side so we need to urgently address this injustice.