Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 257: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if, in view of the fact that waiting times for hearing tests for children at Newbridge and Tallaght Health Centres are now back to a waiting list of four months, she will arrange for the provision of additional clinics to reduce waiting times. [13912/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 258: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if the two additional speech and language therapists approved for County Kildare have been recruited following the re-advertising of the posts. [13923/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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Over 120,000 people work full-time or part-time in our public health services. In recent years, the Government's ongoing high level of investment in health has achieved and maintained significant increases in the numbers of doctors, nurses and other health care professionals employed in the public health services. The Government has also invested heavily in the education and training of such personnel in order to secure a good supply of graduates to provide for the health care needs of the population into the future.

Subject to overall parameters set by Government, the Health Service Executive has the responsibility for determining the composition of its staffing complement. In that regard, it is a matter for the Executive to manage and deploy its human resources to best meet the requirements of its Annual Service Plan for the delivery of health and personal social services to the public. The Executive is the appropriate body to consider the matter raised by the Deputy. My Department has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to have the matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 259: To ask the Minister for Health and Children when a reply will issue to Parliamentary Question No. 940 of 31 January 2007. [13925/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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My Department has been informed by the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Health Service Executive that a reply has issued to the Deputy.