Pádraig Rice
Cork South-Central · Social Democrats · Ireland
“There is no clinical reason this should not be extended to oral contraceptives. Pharmacists are highly trained healthcare professionals. They should be allowed to operate at the top of their licence. They are available in every community and are very accessible.”
“I welcome the Bill. We spend a lot of time inside these Houses talking about other parts of reproductive healthcare and not enough about contraception, so it is really welcome that we are having a focus and discussion on it and are moving forward with changes.”
“The oral contraceptive pill has been around for well over half a century and is one of the safest and most well-studied medicines available. In 2019, the World Health Organization publicly stated that oral contraception should be available without needing prescription.”
“I move amendment No. 8: In page 5, between lines 20 and 21, to insert the following: “Report on prescription-free oral contraceptives 4. The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before Dáil Éireann a report on a proposal to allow registered pharmacists to dispense prescription-free oral contracepti…”
“We are talking about the prescription of oral contraceptives as called for by the World Health Organization, as set out by the Irish Pharmacy Union and as endorsed by the previous health committee. We are looking for a report on that with the detail of the various elements, if more detail is required.”
“It is important that we allow pharmacists to operate at the top of their licence and give them as much power as possible, and alleviate pressures on GPs. As I said, this is recommended by the World Health Organization and endorsed by the previous health committee and the IPU. That is the background to this amendment.”
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“I thank Deputy Ó Snodaigh and the members of the LGBT+ Restorative Justice Campaign, Kieran Rose, Brian Sheehan, Karl Hayden and others, for their work. I am delighted to co-sign this Bill on behalf of the Social Democrats. It is now 32 years since homosexuality was decriminalised, but some men are still living with the negative impact of criminalisation. Let us be clear: the prosecutions and convictions of gay and bi men for consensual sex was a gross violation of their human rights and did immeasurable damage. These arrests and convictions destroyed lives. The laws also had a negative impact on those who were not convicted because the threat of prosecution was used to harass people in the community. The archaic laws also had a major impact on the provision of public services, including HIV-AIDS prevention.”
“Do not take my word for it; look at the international rankings. Ireland is stuck at 14th in Europe for LGBTQI human rights. Rainbow flags outside Government Buildings are nice but LGBTQI people want enhanced human rights and better policy protections. Will the Government join the growing call for Ireland to set the target of being the best place in Europe in which to be LGBTQI+? Will it ensure full implementation of existing commitments? Will the Tánaiste tell us what meaningful actions the Government will take this year to enhance LGBTQI+ human rights and policy protections?”
“Tens of thousands of people will march through the streets of Dublin this weekend for Dublin Pride, a celebration of love, diversity and liberation. However, Pride is more than a party. It is a protest. Ten years on from marriage equality, progress has slowed. Hate crimes are rising and there is no plan to bring down the numbers. The gaps in family law have not been closed, conversion therapy has not been banned and Ireland has the worst trans healthcare in the EU. The Government's sexual health strategy, published yesterday, does not provide me with confidence that things will change anytime soon. There has not even been a discussion here of intersex people. I am disappointed we did not get Dáil statements on Pride this year but I am even more disappointed with the stalled progress.”
“It seems to me that culture change is not happening quickly enough. That reluctance to release information persists and we have seen that time and again with report after report and the one referenced here is another example of that.”
“I thank the Minister. There are ways of publishing these reports that anonymise the individuals and redact information that is key but then provide full transparency and accountability because trust in this organisation is now at an all-time low. Families are deeply concerned. We need more information released and more publications. Sunlight is a good disinfectant and CHI has been at every stage reluctant to release information to us. I also raise concerns about some of the answers to parliamentary questions we are getting from CHI. Its officials are reluctant to answer reasonable questions we are putting to them. I have no doubt they will be before the health committee again. We have a long list of questions to put to CHI. I have concerns around the pace at which the culture is changing.”
“A number of patient advocacy groups and parents have for a long time been calling for this report to be published. I urge the Minister to consider that and to consider publishing that report along with the others. What we have seen time and again from CHI are issues around transparency, accountability and a reluctance to release information, and we have had to drag that information from the organisation, which is deeply concerning. It indicates to me that the culture in the organisation is not changing. This is another example of it. Last week we raised the internal investigation with CHI. Its officials told the Joint Committee on Health they would provide us with the legal advice on that internal investigation. We have not received that legal advice from them. CHI did publish a summary, as the Minister mentioned.”
“We absolutely need better planning here. A lot of this comes back to staffing. Greater resources must be allocated specifically to breast clinics to ensure adequate staffing throughout the country, regardless of where people live. To secure cancer care pathways greater workforce planning is required but this cannot be siloed in the Department of Health. We need joined-up thinking. The Departments of Health and higher education must work together to ensure people are able to access places on various healthcare courses, especially radiology given its key role in diagnostics. The HSE also has a role as it must ensure there are enough clinical placements for trainees. Crucially, we need to ensure people can stay in Ireland to work in our healthcare system after qualification. As the Minister has said, these are very concerning findings.”
“During these agonising two months all these women were told was that the Mater's BreastCheck clinic was understaffed and there was no estimated appointment date to be provided. In what world is this acceptable? What has happened to this country's cancer services? Cancer care used to be regarded as the jewel in the crown of our health services.”
“One report states that one in four people waited longer than recommended for an appointment at these urgent clinics. I would like to share with the Minister the experiences of two women from north Dublin. They had to wait for in excess of the two-week period to be seen by the matters symptomatic breast clinic. In February, one woman was referred by GP due to the presence of two lumps in her breast. However, when the Mater Hospital received the referral, she was told the waiting time to be seen had risen to three months. Let us imagine receiving this news at a time of extreme uncertainty and fear. It was May before she received her appointment at the Mater. Another symptomatic patient in the Mater who had been waiting for an appointment since April was seen last Monday, two months later.”
“Access to symptomatic breast disease clinics has become a postcode lottery. Following an urgent GP referral, a person should be seen by a clinic within two weeks. However, timely access to these clinics varies widely. Last year, only four out of nine hospitals met the target of seeing 95% of urgent referrals within two weeks. The other five failed. The Mater Hospital only reached 29%, St. James's Hospital 51% and Letterkenny 58%. Some of these are shocking failures. It should not matter where one lives; no person should have to wait more than two weeks. These are urgent referrals. Where is the sense of urgency?”
“What we need is a new direction and a new approach in housing policy. I urge people in Cork city and across Munster to come and gather with us in Cork city this Saturday at 2 p.m. for the Raise the Roof rally and to send a signal and a message to the Government that its housing policies have utterly failed and they need to change.”
“When it comes to social housing, we have not seen the increases we need. In 2023, there was an increase of only 180 social homes in Cork city. Meanwhile, over 3,500 wait on the waiting list. As a result, we have people waiting for more than ten years to access social housing in Cork city. It is not good enough and it needs to change. At the same time, we have 350 vacant council houses - houses that are boarded up - where the council spent almost €1 million in five years boarding up vacant council houses, while we have hundreds of people in our city who are homeless. I do not think the Minister is considering the consequences of his policies and the decisions he is making that are driving up rents, house prices and homelessness. It is a social catastrophe. I ask the Minister to stop, to think, to reconsider and to change track.”
“There will be increases year after year. A student attending college for four years in Cork who moves their tenancy every year will get a huge jump in their rent. I do not think the Minister has thought this through. I do not think he has thought through that students, young people and people who move for work will get their rent reset every single year. The Minister needs to rebrand his affordable housing schemes because they are not affordable. There are affordable houses in Cork city costing €400,000. Does the Minister genuinely believe that a home costing €400,000 is an affordable home? I would love an answer to the question of what he actually considers to be affordable for someone in this country, because in my view €400,000 is not an affordable home. It is an expensive home, not one that people can afford.”
“I have just come in from the protest outside the gates of the House. There is a huge crowd of people outside protesting about the Government's failed policies. We have nurses, students, young people, renters and representatives from all the political parties. They have one really clear message: it is that the Government's housing policies are failing. Things are getting worse and not better, yet the Government is doubling down. What we hear constantly from the Government is that we have turned a corner. Honestly, it has turned so many corners now, it is going round in circles. The Minister has fundamentally got the new rent rules wrong. Students, who are going to change tendencies every year, are going to have their rents reset to market levels. Every single year, students are going to face record high rents.”
“As a result, we have the privatisation of nursing home care and people being moved towards nursing homes as the default because the home care system is not properly regulated or resourced and there is no rights-based approach, something which needs to change. In this House, we are constantly talking about productivity in other parts of our State. We need more productivity in this Parliament. We need legislation to be passed. We need a right to home care. We need safeguarding legislation. I call on the Minister of State to give us a timeline and commitments today on when that key legislation will be passed. It is within the power of the Government to make the fundamental changes that would make a real difference and prevent these scandals happening again.”
“There has been report after report on adult safeguarding and all of the other issues that need to change stacking up in the Department . Ultimately, most older people want to remain in their home, and we know that. The Tánaiste, Deputy Simon Harris, said in 2017 that he would put this on a statutory footing. It was incredibly frustrating to listen to him say in the Dáil earlier that he is committed to putting legislation on a statutory footing, when he committed to it when he was Minister for Health in 2017. What kind of commitment is it if it takes eight years to do the very basics around home care? We need a right to, and the regulation and funding of, home care. It seems to me that nothing is happening.”
“There have long been calls for safeguarding legislation. A Private Members' Bill was introduced in the Seanad in 2017, some eight years ago. There were calls for better protections for vulnerable adults. In the meantime, the Law Reform Commission has published a report. Absolutely nothing has happened. There has been a failure on behalf of the Government to legislate, put basic protections in place and protect the most vulnerable adults. The HSE has a safeguarding policy, but that does not apply to private nursing homes. HSE social workers do not have the right to enter private nursing homes, an absolute scandal that needs to change. The Minister of State and Government have the power to make that change. The Government controls the legislative agenda and has the power to pass safeguarding legislation. We have waited far too long.”
“Over the past 35 years, in Ireland we have had an explosion of the for-profit nursing home care model. In 1990, 32% of nursing homes were private. By 2023, the figure was 81%. There has been a real shift. These are policy and Government decisions to shift from a public and not-for-profit model to a privatised model that is leading to poor outcomes for people. Across the country,smaller and community based nursing homes have closed in villages and towns across the country. There are ten large investment funds which hold one third of nursing homes and, therefore, a huge amount of control over nursing homes in the State. In 2020, Leo Varadkar and the Tánaiste, Deputy Simon Harris, said that the model had to change. What has changed in the past four years? We now have the most privatised nursing home sector in all of Europe.”
“HIQA, which was set up in response to Leas Cross, has serious questions to answer on the credibility of its inspection reports. We need to review the powers and operation of HIQA and how and when inspections take place. It was clear from the RTÉ programme that a lot of issues happen at night, and there are questions about whether HIQA carries out inspections at night. That needs to be examined. HIQA needs to examine the minimum staffing requirements and put regulations and rules in place so that nursing homes are well staffed and resourced. Ultimately, we have an issue with the model of care. There are serious issues with the for-profit model of elder care. International research shows us that there are worse outcomes compared with public and not-for-profit care homes.”
“The "RTÉ Investigates" programme was shocking, disturbing and difficult viewing. Nobody in this country should be treated in that way. It is clear that the nursing homes in question were understaffed and under-resourced and patients were treated in an appalling manner. What concerns me and many of us is that this is a repeat of the scandals of the past. What we are seeing is history repeating itself. We saw Leas Cross 20 years ago. Deputies have set out previous scandals. Time and time again we have had failure after failure. I wonder what lessons have been learned. I have absolutely no doubt we will be back here again talking about another scandal because there has been a lack of action for decades on these issues.”
“It is time for the Government to work with unions to develop an appropriate long-term occupational illness scheme for this small group of workers. In the meantime, the very least that is required is another extension of the current scheme before the end of the month. What is the Government going to do for these healthcare workers?”
“The special long-Covid scheme for healthcare workers is due to end in two weeks' time creating huge financial uncertainty for healthcare workers still suffering from long Covid. These workers were exposed to Covid in healthcare settings at the height of the pandemic when many others were told to remain at home. Some of these got Covid before PPE and vaccines were in place. They made a huge sacrifice and we owe them a debt of gratitude but it seems like the State is going to turn its back on them. These workers should not be facing another financial cliff edge. At the bare minimum, there must be an extension of the special scheme for healthcare workers. It would be deeply unfair to force these workers onto a basic, time-restricted sick pay scheme. Ultimately, a permanent solution must be found.”
“The Minister of State mentioned ECTs in her remarks. The Social Democrats will oppose section 83 which allows for ECT for children. According to the Psychological Society of Ireland, it has not been used in the State on children in more than two decades. It is still contained in the Bill. I accept that ECT is subject to the approval of the High Court. We believe that it should never be used. In 2023, the WHO and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights advised against the use of ECT on children and young people and recommended its prohibition by legislative. The Ombudsman for Children has also raised concerns and said that further consideration must give to its inclusion in this new Bill.”
“I support the sentiments of previous speakers on enshrining wider assessment. If the Minister of State agrees this needs to be done but does not agree with the actual amendment, I encourage her to consider inserting a Report Stage amendment that will achieve something similar. I ask her to consider doing that on Report Stage, if she agrees this is worth doing and is worthwhile.”
“I share the concerns expressed by others. The Mental Health Commission has recommended that a dedicated authorised officer unit be set up in the HSE. I would be interested in the Minister of State's thoughts on that. I share the concern regarding full-time officers. What resources will be put in place to ensure that happens? It is all well and good saying we should have people available 24-7, but we need to resource that and have funding available. What resources does the Minister of State intend to put in place to ensure full-time officers are available across the country?”
“I asked the Minister of State questions about section 12 and I do not think I got a response. I raised the concerns of the Psychological Society of Ireland about the lowering of the threshold, whether the Minister of State agreed the threshold was lowered in section 12 for involuntary admission and what her response was to the deep concern expressed by the Psychological Society of Ireland in urging the restoration of a higher threshold and higher safeguards before the deprivation of liberty.”
“As regards involuntary detention under section 12, the note I have from the Psychological Society of Ireland says that the threshold for involuntary detention appears to be lower than section 12 criteria for involuntary admission to registered acute mental health centres. The society expresses its deep concern and urges restoration of the higher safeguards before liberty is removed. I would be interested in the Minister of State's response to those concerns.”
“I want to express my concerns about children being moved to adult psychiatric services. I say respectfully to the Minister of State that if she does not want to tie the hands of consultants, the best way to do that would be to ensure there are services and supports for people. I agree with the suggestion that this issue around 16- and 17-year-olds should be considered as part of the review of the Act. I welcome that the review will now happen within five years rather than ten. I would be interested to hear, with regard to legislation generally, what the general timeframe for review is. Is five years a more standard timeframe? It is welcome that this amendment has been passed as well.”
“On the definition before us, amendment No. 13 states, ""mental disorder” means, in relation to a person, any mental illness or mental health difficulty". If the Deputy has a problem with the term "mental health difficulty", he is actually speaking against the Government amendment. I seek some clarity on that. The new definition of mental disorder we are seeing in amendment No. 13 includes "illness or mental health difficulty". I would like some clarity on that.”
“I am interested in hearing the Minister of State's thinking on this and the rationale for the continued use of "mental disorder", which most people see as archaic language.”
“I accept there is no consensus on an appropriate replacement term and that everybody's experience is different, but there is general agreement that the term "disorder" should no longer be used. It is not in line with the terminology adopted by the UN, the UNCRPD, the WHO or the European Commission. The Psychological Society of Ireland has put forward "mental illness" as a replacement, while Mental Health Reform has suggested either "mental health difficulties" or "psychosocial disability". My colleague, Deputy Quaide, went with "mental health difficulty" for the purpose of these amendments. This term would also be in line with the language used in Sharing the Vision. I believe this would be a more appropriate term but remain open-minded about other suggestions.”
“Many of the amendments in this group were tabled by my colleague, Deputy Liam Quaide, who, unfortunately, cannot be here. He sends his apologies. The amendments seek to delete the term "mental disorder" and substitute it with "mental health difficulty". Many key stakeholders have raised concerns about the continued use of "mental disorder" in the Bill. I note the Minister has brought forward an amendment to expand the definition of "mental disorder", but the term itself remains problematic. The Psychological Society of Ireland has called it outdated and stigmatising, while Mental Health Reform has stated that the use of such medicalised language can be exclusionary for some people.”
“I add our support to the amendment and say it is clear that people are falling through the cracks, being pushed from pillar to post and not getting the services and supports they need. There are real concerns, in particular, around addiction and substance abuse supports for people. In my city of Cork, it is a massive issue and there is a lack of supports and services there. There are also people with mental health issues. We support those amendments, particularly the guiding principles they seek to insert in the legislation. It is an important issue, and it should be dealt with.”
“It will put them on a level playing field with other students, taking into account the challenges they face because of dyslexia, and give them the extra time to deal with comprehension, reading and a slower writing pace. The least the State Examinations Commission can do is provide these reasonable accommodations for students sitting their State exams. They are tough enough. They are gruelling exams and students with additional needs, dyslexia or other issues should not face these additional barriers. Reforms should be made. I would like the Minister of State to commit to doing that.”
“It is deeply unfair that students get these accommodations at third level that are not being provided at second level. This is something that should be given real consideration. I would like the Minister of State to discuss this with the Ministers at the Department responsible. Students deserve a clear answer on whether this will be changed for next year. They have waited long enough for this. As I said, views have been expressed quite clearly by people. More than 33,000 people have signed a petition calling for extra time. This is an issue that young people themselves are now speaking out about. It is not a massive change but it will make a real difference for those students.”
“While I welcome the review, as I set out, we now have reports going back as far as 2008 that have called for this change to be made. Many people will view the Minister of State's answer as a delay. What we want is an answer on whether the Government will provide the additional time for students' exams that has been called for. It is ten minutes extra per hour in their exams. It is also worth saying that the international evidence is already there. I have set out what other countries do. We also know what third level institutions in Ireland do, so we do not need to reinvent the wheel. We do not need a very wide consultation on this. We can look to what is happening in third level institutions throughout the country, where students with dyslexia are provided with additional time in their exams.”
“Richard Branson, who is also dyslexic, calls it his superpower. EY has published a report about better problem-solving skills. There are challenges for these students but some of them also have additional skills. We in the Social Democrats would like additional supports, not just for the State examinations, but also throughout the second level experience. We also want better teacher training around dyslexia, dyspraxia and neurodivergence more generally. That needs to be ongoing throughout the school experience. Is the Government going to provide the additional time that is being called for in next year's junior and leaving certificate examinations? If not, why not?”
“She was calling for extra time in examinations. Dyslexia Ireland has also been campaigning on the issue. Some 33,000 people have now signed its petition calling for extra time. There are also recommendations from others. Professor Áine Hyland made a recommendation in 2008 to provide for additional time but it was not acted on. The Ombudsman for Children raised concerns around reasonable accommodation in a report in 2016. What is holding this up? Why is the change not being made? Why are we not providing better reasonable accommodation for students with dyslexia? While we talk about the challenges, it is also worth highlighting some of the positives. There is a great organisation called Made By Dyslexia, which highlights some of the positives of being dyslexic, including better reasoning skills, communication skills and visualisation.”
“It is deeply unfair that students in Dundalk do not get extra time but those in Newry do. We need to consider this proposal seriously. Due consideration should be given to reforming the rules in advance of next year's junior and leaving certificate examinations. We had a briefing in the AV room from students Sive O'Brien and Madison Moore from Our Lady's Bower Secondary School in Athlone. They talked about their own experiences as students with dyslexia. They did a project for the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition that looked at the international evidence and made a strong case for providing this additional time. Other students across the country have also advocated for these changes. In my own county of Cork, Alice R. Perks was speaking out about this. She spoke powerfully on 96FM. She is a published poet.”
“In University College Cork, UCC, I got ten minutes extra per hour in each examination. I also got great support from the disability support service in the university. I went on to do a master's degree in Oxford and was provided with 15 minutes extra per hour, a tutor and the option to type examinations. It is challenging that students must break through educational barriers to get supports and that the higher one goes up the educational ladder, the better the supports that are in place, which is counterintuitive. We need to provide students at second level with the same kinds of supports that are being provided at third level. These kinds of supports are in place in other countries. In the UK, students are provided with 25% extra time. In Italy, it is 30%. In France, it is 33%.”
“I wish the best of luck to all those sitting State examinations - the junior and leaving certificate examinations - across the country. Sitting State examinations can be a challenging and gruelling experience but it can be extra challenging for those with additional needs and dyslexia. Unlike other countries and third level, the State does not provide additional time to students with dyslexia during State examinations. The State is doing a cruel disservice to these students by not providing them with additional time. I would like to see this change and the Minister to consider the proposal that extra time be provided for junior and leaving certificate students at next year's examinations. I know from my own experience as somebody with dyslexia that the additional time provided at third level makes a significant difference.”
“As Deputy Hearne said, the number of social and affordable homes needs to be massively increased. That is the only way this housing crisis will be solved. Older houses also need to be retrofitted. In 2023, Cork City Council retrofitted just 53 of its houses. At this rate, it will take Cork City Council 200 years to retrofit all of its homes. It is madness and it needs to change.”
“The amount of money being wasted boarding up vacant houses is scandalous when people in our city are homeless. It is a disgrace. Every day they are boarded up, the cost goes up because there is a per day rate to board up houses. The Taoiseach came into the House a few weeks ago and said council houses should be turned around in about three weeks. In the place he lives, Cork City Council, it is 32 weeks - far from the target set of three weeks. Pressure needs to be put on local authorities and they need to be provided with the resources to turn them around. At a time when far too many people in my city are homeless and in need of homes, it is disgraceful that there are vacant houses. On the bigger picture, we have seen a very slow increase in the overall number of social houses in the city.”
“I echo everything said by Deputy Hearne. Nothing causes more frustration for people in housing need than seeing council houses boarded up. It causes huge frustration for people when they look out and see a house across the way that has been boarded up for weeks and months while they are living in an overcrowded house. Intergenerational families are stuck living together while there are houses across my constituency in Cork that are boarded up. Across County Cork, 495 houses are boarded up. In Cork city, there are 345. Some 196 of those have been boarded up for more than 12 months. These houses have to be turned around more quickly to provide homes. The costs associated with this are also frustrating. In the past five years, Cork City Council spent €890,000 boarding up vacant council houses.”
“We have to be clear that criticism of Israel is not antisemitism. Finally, which is the business of today's debate, we must enact legislation to stop the Central Bank facilitating the sale of Israel war bonds and have sanctions on Israel. We have to stand up against Israeli brutality. There is no justification for genocide. Equally, there is no justification for inaction in the face of genocide. Ireland must do more, the EU must do more, and the whole world must do more. This has to stop, Israel has to stop, and we have to make them stop. On behalf of the people I represent in Cork South-Central, I call on the Government to do more.”
“The first is to enact the occupied territories Bill. This must be done urgently and before the summer recess in July. The legislation must cover goods and services. There is no time to be wasted here. The Bill was first introduced in this House in 2018. We have been waiting years so act on that now. Second, we must continue to apply pressure at EU level for the full suspension of the EU-Israel association agreement for the violation of human rights clauses. A review alone is not enough. Third, we must end the use of Shannon Airport by the US military and stop the flow of weapons through Irish airspace. Ireland's official neutrality is meaningless while we facilitate military operations. Fourth, the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, IHRA, definition of antisemitism must be removed from the programme for Government.”
“What is happening in Gaza right now is horrific and unjust. Israel's actions are disturbing, disgusting and criminal. We are witnessing an evil that is difficult to comprehend. While Israel is blocking the provision of aid and while food is being withheld, Gaza is on the brink of famine. We cannot continue business as normal when Israel is allowing children to starve. As a TD, my job is to be a messenger of the people. The message from the people could not be clearer. The people want the Government to do more, to speak louder, and to shout stop. Most importantly, the people want the Government to act. Every day I receive endless emails from people who are desperate and hopeless in the face of what they see as Government inaction. Today I have five calls for the Government and five actions the Government can take.”
“As an Oireachtas, we need to collectively get behind the agreed Sláintecare reform plans and accelerate those because the children of Ireland deserve better than what we are seeing in these reports and scandal after scandal.”
“We are now a number of years into a ten-year plan and we do not believe it is happening quickly enough. Until we deliver universal healthcare that is free at the point of use in the community and based on need and not ability to pay, these issues will arise again and again, and we will face future scandals. While this is looking at one particular issue in one particular section in one particular hospital, the issues are systematic and will not be addressed until we rebuild and reform our healthcare services and deliver the type of universal, single-tier and high-quality services that are enjoyed by people throughout Europe.”
“There are issues about building in these additional layers that we might not need in our health service and whether the HSE can directly manage these hospitals. The national children's hospital is a €2.2-billion hospital, as the Minister knows. We need to get this right. We need to spend time and carefully consider it and I ask for that to be part of her consideration. In terms of the bigger picture, there seems to be a lack of controls and accountability. We in the Social Democrats have long argued that the mix of public and private together in an uncontrolled system without accountability is toxic for our health service. This is why we fundamentally believe in the delivery of universal healthcare through Sláintecare. That needs to be accelerated, however.”