Results 421-440 of 1,059,410 for in 'Dáil debates' OR (speaker:Tom Kitt OR speaker:Michael Fitzmaurice OR speaker:Stephen Donnelly OR speaker:Mairead Farrell OR speaker:Jim O'Callaghan OR speaker:Pauline Tully OR speaker:Richard Boyd Barrett) in 'Committee meetings'

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: Go raibh maith agat. I am conscious of time. I will allow everyone come back in for five minutes. I will take an Teachta Carthy. Then we will take our break and take a second round.

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: Beidh mise mar an chéad cainteoir eile. One issue that has annoyed me for some time, even previously in my role as a city councillor on Galway City Council, is that of agency spend. We have seen that it has gone from a spend of €350 million to €650 million in a four to five year period. If we look at that trend and the figures that we had up until August, it seems that...

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: I understand that is the aim but the reality is, when we look at the figures, they do not correspond to what the aim is.

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: If the HSE wants to reduce it then holding it steady is not equating to the aim.

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: How long does Mr. Gloster think that will take to have an impact?

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: Does Mr. Gloster think it could have an impact on this year?

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: Before quarter 3 of last year. When does Mr. Gloster expect it to be at 2019 levels or does he not see that at all?

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: For some time. I can see from the spend on the management and administration that the HSE has gone from €29 million to €86 million in those areas. One of the frustrations for people - and it is not always a frustration that is based on facts, it can be based on experience and we have heard quite powerfully from an Teachta Cannon his own experience of getting the piece of paper...

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: Mr. Gloster stated that he had a staff of approximately 166,000. There is considerable frustration about agency spend in general, particularly given that there are many people who want to get good jobs in the HSE. This expenditure on agency and management and administration basically represents a trebling of the previous amount. Why has it increased to this level in such a short period?

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: But this is €86 million.

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: Covid was an exceptional time,-----

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: -----but we are discussing a large amount of spending. I understand that the HSE has an aim, but it does not seem that the aim and what the HSE is doing correlate at all. The Minister created a productivity and savings task force, which set a target of reduced spending. Who sits on that task force?

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: For me, the main question is who sits on that task force. At yesterday’s health committee meeting, Fórsa stated that there was also a representative of the consultancy firms sitting on it. Is that correct?

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: Does that not beggar belief? Would the consultancy firm in question – I do not need to know which one it is – have benefited from agency spend in terms of management fees?

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: But this is the particular issue I-----

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: I understand having external assistance.

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: We mentioned an external element while discussing procurement issues, but in most people’s heads, “external” means “independent”, in that there would be an independent external body examining matters. This raises a concern about-----

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: I am not interested in those specifics.

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: I understand that is the concept-----

Public Accounts Committee: Financial Statements 2023: Health Service Executive (24 Oct 2024)

Mairead Farrell: Yes, but we are also seeing an increase in agency spend.