Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)
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72. To ask the Minister for Finance if he will introduce income tax relief on loans to graduate entry medical students as outlined in correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43554/14]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I have considered the proposal for the introduction of a tax relief for Graduate Entry Medicine (GEM) loans and I do not consider that the tax system is the appropriate way to address the affordability of the GEM programme.

The affordability and funding of undergraduate medical education is in the first instance a matter for the Department of Education and Skills, having due regard to the needs and requirements of the health system for medical practitioners.    

The Department of Health's current focus in relation to the recruitment and retention of medical practitioners is on implementation of the recommendations of the Strategic Review of Medical Training and Career Structure, completed earlier this year. The Strategic Review reports address a range of barriers and issues relating to the recruitment and retention of doctors in the Irish public health system, and offer solutions and recommendations that will enable the State to build a sustainable medical workforce for the future.