Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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Question 128: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children Ireland's ranking in relation to health spending within the European Union; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15369/05]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The latest information available from the OECD database, as set out in the following table, shows total health expenditure per capita in Ireland in 2002 to be US$2,367 — purchasing power parity, PPP. This places Ireland eighth among the EU 15 and above the EU 15 average per capita spending of US$2,326 — PPP. The OECD database also enables comparison of 19 EU countries — EU 15 plus Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovak Republic and Poland. Ireland still ranks eighth and considerably above the average per capita spending of the EU 19, which is US$2,023 — PPP.

The Health Vote — the Department of Health and Children and the Health Service Executive — contains funds to cover a broad range of personal and social services, including social care, as well as what is recognised by OECD as coming within the standard boundaries of health care. The figures published by the OECD take account of adjustments necessary to bring Ireland's health expenditure better into line with the boundaries for health systems set out in the OECD system of health accounts.

However, if account is taken of all the items which fall within the Health Vote in Ireland, then Ireland's public health sector spending in 2005 is €11.94 billion — Revised Book of Estimates 2005. Per capita, this amounts to €3,000. Since 2002, our real growth in publicly funded health spending has been about 37%.