Lisa Chambers (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Senator Sherlock spoke about Dublin Airport and staff shortages in the HSE. The latter is an ongoing problem. We have found it very difficult to recruit staff at all levels of the health service and recruitment takes an inordinate amount of time. Many posts have been provided for by the Government and there is funding to pay staff yet we struggle to entice staff to work in the health service. Clearly, the problem is not just due to salaries and we must work on conditions such as long hours. Recently junior doctors have spoken out about their difficulties in working 24 and 36 hours straight without a break. Therefore, we must do a lot of work on the conditions of work but the solution is like a chicken and egg scenario. One must recruit staff to make conditions better for all staff and provide more cover yet without recruiting staff it is very hard to address that issue.

Senator Dolan spoke about the rural social scheme and Tús schemes. These are hugely important schemes for towns and villages across the country. I agree with her that we should make it much easier to get people into those schemes because a limit has been placed on when one can join and how long one can remain on the schemes. We can address these issues because many people would love to work on these schemes and they are valuable to local communities. Numerous little jobs around towns and villages would never get done only for these schemes. The Senator is right that these schemes can be a really good way of re-activating people and getting them back into the workplace or education. These schemes are a good way to get people back out and about, which should be our priority. The Government is working hard on getting people back into work. Again, we are close to full employment. There will always be an element of people on the live register for other reasons because they are unable to work, which is completely understandable. For anyone who can and would like to get back into the workplace or education these schemes could be one of the avenues to do so.