Mr. Bernard Gloster:

Yes. To go back to the waiting lists for a second, just to give an idea of the quantum we are talking about, as of 10 October, which is, effectively, right up to date at week 41, the total number of patients waiting for acute hospital care was 702,000 people. This is just 33,000 behind target, which in the context of the volume is quite low. In that time, what we have done is if people are on an outpatient waiting list, the weighted average waiting time is down to seven months. If people are on an inpatient waiting list, the time has come down to 6.6 weeks. For people on a scope list, the waiting time has come down to three months.

Fundamentally, what we are getting is a far higher volume of people being seen and treated. A major exercise was done in the health service in 2018 called the capacity review and it projected out to 2031. What I have been saying to everyone for the last year is that the activity we are doing this year means that 2031 is here already. The demographic demand is enormous. We have not been able to predict for the last two years the number of people who will be coming onto our outpatient waiting lists because they are growing by such a rate. What we are getting, then, is a higher and faster level of service. I would argue that, fundamentally, when we look at this in the round, there has been a major improvement in the quality of outcomes for people. If we look at the quality of outcomes in Irish healthcare, it will be seen that, despite our problems with access, they are right up there at the top of the EU 27. This is what we get for the money.