Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with Senators Craughwell and McFadden on the failure to deal with the pay issue in the Defence Forces, which has dragged on for a long time.There are people in the Defence Forces who are extremely committed to working in and remaining in the Defence Forces but they are not getting the support they require. This review has been long-fingered and we have been waiting for its publication for far too long. We are now competing with the private sector when it comes to retaining people. We have a major difficulty in retaining people in the Naval Service and the rest of the Defence Forces. This issue needs to be dealt with before the end of this term.

I also wish to raise the issue of the healthcare sector and the level of negativity that is being broadcast daily by the national media. Yesterday's edition of "Six One News" contained three reports on the health service, all of which were negative. There is no acknowledgement of the commitment of the people who work in the health service and their dedication to their jobs. Every year, there are 3.5 million outpatient appointments. This means that more than 63,000 people attend outpatients every week. Another 23,000 people attend accident and emergency every week and are dealt with. Yes, there can be delays and there are undue delays but a health service is being provided. We are now talking about the new children's hospital. Day in, day out, there is nothing but negative coverage. We have gone through 22 Ministers for Health who have spoken about building a hospital. We are actually building it and will deliver on it. Fianna Fáil's spokesperson on health, Deputy Donnelly, is criticising an aspect of it with regard to what is being provided for consultants. We cannot get consultants unless we provide the back-up support for them and that is part of their contract. Now Deputy Donnelly is saying that this should not be provided in the new children's hospital. It is wrong that this negativity continues. It is not helping to encourage staff to give and maintain the commitment and dedication they show in providing care for the population of this country.