Vincent P Martin (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister and wish him well in his new post. Objectively, and to give credit where credit is due, as an Opposition spokesperson he won the confidence of people on the front line, not only his supporters. They believe in Stephen Donnelly. They believe he understands the intricacies and challenges and they are backing the Minister to make a difference.

In the past we have had not so much false dawns as perhaps the tying of hands. Today we are faced with a Bill on free access to universal healthcare. Who in their right mind would not support that? I will not engage in repetition where my fellow Senators have covered ground, but in essence we are expanding access to GPs and the healthcare system for more children on a phased basis. I am just concerned that this is almost like a parallel universe. As we strive in unanimity to reach that laudable, noble goal, the promised land of Sláintecare, access for all, what does the Minister say to the children who cannot afford access and who have been waiting years for vital intervention? Do we say it is only €50 million to do more? We would all love to do it, yet children are being left behind as we relentlessly do our best to get to where we would all like to be. We therefore expand access to GPs. Is the Minister aware that many of them are overworked, understaffed and swamped with patients they can hardly cope with? Our brightest and youngest run abroad as soon as they qualify and do not come back. We cannot bring consultants back into this country. I put down that warning today. I am not getting carried away. I support the Bill. There is, however, a large bell ringing in the back of the room. The challenge is how the Minister strikes that balance. What is his prioritisation for vulnerable children?This will give children whose parents are millionaires access. That is great because perhaps they would not have gone otherwise. We should get all the sociological studies on that. Who would not welcome as much access as possible for everyone? However, this comes at a time when our system is under massive pressure and when many in the profession feel they will not get the commensurate support to deliver and roll out this service. What does the Minister say to the people who will make this happen, who make the magic happen? We are the legislators and we can provide for today, but what support does the Minister have for those on the front line? The support provided in the context of Covid has left a lot to be desired. These people were on the front line. The advice was to contact one's GP. It was several weeks before we were told to phone the GP, not just to rock up to his or her surgery. We had a minute's silence in this House for the latest healthcare professional to lose his life protecting and caring for us. Where was the healthcare and personal protective equipment for our doctors? It came very late for some of them.

I have hope as the Minister starts on this challenge. He excelled in opposition, and it is not every Opposition spokesperson who immediately gets the first available opportunity to step into the shoes of the outgoing Minister and translate words into action. Now the country is looking at the Minister and wishing him well on his journey. I know that what I have said might not have come as news to him. I would love to know how he will balance this and square this circle - this major contradiction - as we strive at the pace we are striving. As Senator Keogan said, and I am glad she did, it is not a pretty picture. There are children who have been waiting years. The Minister cannot turn back the clock. They are being deprived of essential intervention, and they only get one childhood. There are adults who have been waiting years as well. As a result, I will be reserved in the context of my welcome for the Bill until such time as the Minister has ensured greater, fairer, more accessible balance and roll-out of the services whereby everyone will be treated equally.