Government trying to massage waiting list figures

Sinn Féin TD Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin

Sinn Féin Health spokesperson Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin TD has accused the Minister for Health and Children Mícheál Martin of massaging hospital waiting list figures in order to mask the Government's failure to fulfil its promise to end waiting lists within two years. This was after the Minister gave responsibility to the National Treatment Purchase Fund for the collation of waiting list figures and reclassified thousands of patients to 'reduce' the waiting list.

Ó Caoláin said this was "Ministerial sleight of hand":

"The Minister for Health and Children is engaging in a statistical exercise which cannot hide the failure of this government to fulfil the promise it knew it could not keep," he said. "While there has been some improvement in waiting times, the fact remains that there are over 27,000 people on hospital waiting lists. The figures published today do not take account of the number of people waiting for appointments with hospital consultants — in other words people on waiting lists to get onto the waiting lists.

"The National Treatment Purchase Fund today confirmed that it is paying for public patients to be treated in private hospitals in England. Irish taxpayers' money is helping to fund the private health business in England and in Ireland while public facilities costing €400 million lie idle in this state. This Government's health policy is a shambles and no amount of massaging figures can disguise that reality."

Taoiseach challenged on leaked memo

Earlier on Tuesday, during Leaders' Questions in the Dáil, Ó Caolain challenged the Taoiseach on the leaked memo from the Minister for Health and Children Mícheál Martin to his Cabinet colleagues which shows that hospital facilities provided at a cost of €400 million are lying idle because of lack of funding to staff them.

Ó Caoláin asked Ahern to confirm the authenticity of the leaked Cabinet memos, which, he said, revealed "the shambles that is now this Government's so-called health policy?

"Does the fact that these highly confidential documents were leaked reveal dismay within the Department of Health and Children at the restrictions on health spending and public sector recruitment imposed by the Minister for Finance? €400 million in capital funding has been invested in new health facilities that are ready for opening but that are lying idle because of the spending restrictions. Can he confirm, as the Minister stated, if these units are not opened in 2004 the investment that has already been made will not be properly utilised? In other words, massive amounts of money are being wasted in unused capital investment projects and in the ongoing running costs of empty facilities."

€52 million wasted on e-voting

Ó Caoláin pointed out that the €50 million in extra spending sought by the Minister for Health this year is €2 million less than the €52 million the Government squandered on the flawed electronic voting system:

"Can the Taoiseach blame the people if they are cynical about what may emerge from government now, just weeks in advance of the local and European elections?" he asked. "I would urge the government to accede to the minister's request for extra funding to allow these facilities to open. But I would also ask where is the coherence in a government health policy that is dictated by the electoral interests of Fianna Fáil and the PDs and not by the health needs of the people?"