John Cregan (Limerick West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 170: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if the operation of the national treatment purchase fund is under the control of her Department or the HSE; if she will report on procedures done, the cost of same to date, the impact on waiting lists and give an analysis of each category of procedure; the number of procedures in each hospital; if there is competition between hospitals; the way in which work is divided between them; if public hospitals are allowed to tender for procedures; if so, the reason this is allowed when they cannot cope with existing patients; if this practice will cease before this scheme is destroyed; if the waiting list initiative fund still exists; if so, the amount budgeted for same in 2005; the way in which hospitals qualify for their payments; and if it is distributed without focus. [12834/05]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The national treatment purchase fund, NTPF, is a statutory body funded directly by my Department. The health strategy envisaged that the fund would be used to purchase treatment from private hospitals in Ireland and from international providers, and would also make use of any private capacity within public hospitals to arrange treatment for patients. Having regard to the demands on the public hospital system, I have asked the fund to keep its use of private capacity within public hospitals to the minimum.

Responsibility for the collation and publishing of waiting list and waiting time data rests with the NTPF. My Department has, therefore, asked the chief executive of the NTPF to reply to the Deputy directly with regard to the detailed information requested. The waiting list initiative has been wound up and the relevant funding was transferred to the NTPF.