John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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71. To ask the Minister for Health where he has amended the Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015, which is shortly due to come before both Houses of the Oireachtas and which will seek to amend the Medical Practitioners Act 2007, to remove the requirement for an equivalence of a certificate of experience for doctors who qualified outside the European Union and who are seeking registration in the trainee specialist division of the register; if he made a commitment to so amend the Bill; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3933/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Last November I received approval from Government to the drafting of a Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill. This Bill is now being drafted as a matter of priority. This is a different Bill to the Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill currently before the Houses of the Oireachtas. The latter is effectively a Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) No. 1 Bill, with the other a No. 2 Bill as soon as it is introduced.

The Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill being drafted provides for amendments to the Medical Practitioners Act 2007; the Dentists Act 1985; the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005; the Pharmacy Act 2007; the Nurses and Midwives Act 2011; and the Health Acts 1953 and 2004 to provide for:

- consequential amendments required by the transposition of Directive 2013/55/EU;

- an appeal against minor sanctions;

- amendments in relation to a number of issues.

As the provisions in relation to registration are being amended consequential to the Professional Qualifications Directive, I am taking the opportunity to remove the equivalence of the certificate of experience as a requirement for entry to the Trainee Specialist Division. This would mean that entry to the Trainee Specialist Division for doctors with non-EEA qualifications would be by way of the Pre-Registration Examination System (unless exempted) and the offer of a specialist training post by the HSE in a recognised training programme.