John Cummins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

That is the key issue. It seems from the Minister of State's discussions with Mr. O'Sullivan that we can get to that level of service while the recruitment is ongoing. Obviously, these are highly skilled individuals who are not waiting around for a phone call to take up a post at UHW. It is good that we will be able to move to that level of service while the recruitment proceeds at the same time. As I have said previously, there is not much grasp of the level of vested interest in play here, both in the medical space and further afield. There are those who did not and still do not want this service to expand at UHW. The Government has always had the political will and determination to get to this significant level of service, namely, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. provision with weekend cover. As I said, when I was the mayor of Waterford, consultants would cover up to 95% of all cardiac cases, which is a significant leap forward. Given their throughput and the work done in the two cath labs, I am confident they will demonstrate a need to build further in the time ahead.