Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 84: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the status of the new consultant contract; the principal differences between this contract and the common contract agreed in 1997; if consultants will be able to consult private patients under the revised contract; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17697/07]

Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)
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Question 90: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the status of the new consultant contract; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17665/07]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 101: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the progress which has been made on the renegotiation of the hospital consultants contract since the dissolution of the 29th Dáil; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17354/07]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Question 106: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the situation regarding the consultant contract; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17601/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 84, 90, 101, 106 and 178 together.

The independent chairman of the negotiations, Mr Mark Connaughton SC., has put forward proposals for a Framework Agreement between the employing authorities in the health service and consultants. I have recently met with the organisations representing the consultants, the Irish Hospital Consultants Association and the Irish Medical Organisation, and both organisations expressed their willingness to resume talks within the context of the chairman's proposed framework. I have also met with Mr Connaughton and I am hopeful that the talks process will get underway again shortly and will be concluded by early Autumn.

In relation to consultants engaging in private practice I would like to emphasise that all patients, whether public or private, and subject to clinical need, should receive equitable access to care provided by consultants on public hospital campuses and public community facilities. Where private practice is carried out on public hospital campuses/community facilities, it must not compromise patients' access to consultant-provided care and must be compatible with an equitable and efficient allocation of public funds. In this regard management has already proposed two variants of a new contract: Type A whereby consultants will not receive private fees and Type B where consultants will have access to private practice on-site within agreed parameters.

I would like to remind Deputies that the current consultants' contract needs to be reformed in order to achieve the following objectives: a consultant-provided rather than a consultant-led service; greater flexibility in consultants' work practices and working times; a clearly defined commitment by consultants to the public hospital system; the introduction of consultant team-working as the norm; enhancement of the role of consultants with respect to managerial and financial accountability; a more pro-active and strategic role for consultants in the supervision, education and training of NCHDs; and more effective planning and monitoring of consultants' services.