I have two points to add to the comments made by my Government colleagues. The first is that we are temporary custodians of the processes and standards that were built before our time in the House. The Ceann Comhairle is a constitutional officeholder who was elected by the Dáil. It is disproportionate to have a motion of confidence if the only issue is the way in which she took a vote. She commenced a process a numbe…
TDs / Jennifer Carroll MacNeill
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill
Minister for Health
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
0
questions asked
Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them
182,871
words spoken in the chamber
179,569 as a minister, 3,302 as a TD
355
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
Members of the Government answer parliamentary questions rather than ask them, so this page lists none of theirs.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Contributions to debates 710 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Contributions |
|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 19 |
| March 2025 | 40 |
| April 2025 | 20 |
| May 2025 | 52 |
| June 2025 | 52 |
| July 2025 | 44 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 7 |
| October 2025 | 59 |
| November 2025 | 56 |
| December 2025 | 11 |
| January 2026 | 57 |
| February 2026 | 9 |
| March 2026 | 51 |
| April 2026 | 45 |
| May 2026 | 11 |
| June 2026 | 14 |
| July 2026 | 60 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 12 |
| October 2026 | 91 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 567 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Dún Laoghaire 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fine Gael 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister for Health 23 January 2025 to now
I just want to observe with regard to UHL that over the bank holiday weekend in February, 140 people were waiting on trolleys but this weekend there were 79. That is a 56% reduction and it should be like that all the time. There is huge capacity going into Limerick in terms of the 96-bed block and a second one. There will be 582 new beds delivered. An interim report by HIQA was brought to me and I will probably publi…
The national review of adult specialist cardiac services is finalised. The review provides a detailed, evidence-driven analysis of cardiac services across the country. A wide range of stakeholders - clinical, patient and public - were consulted as part of the review. The review provides recommendations around cardiac health policy, specifically: patient-centred care integrated with Sláintecare; increased cardiac care…
I cannot answer why it has not been done to date but I commit to the Deputy that it will be done and, naturally, I would welcome his engagement on it when it is published. I will be meeting the people involved when I come back from the St. Patrick's Day trip. I look forward to getting it published then because, as the Deputy says, it is incredibly important that it is done.
Recent trends in the demand for cardiac se…
I could not agree more about the need for a dedicated cardiovascular strategy and the multi-annual funding to facilitate that. With regard to Waterford, I have a small update. After an extensive recruitment campaign, we now have two labs open. One of those, from 18 March, will open with extended, albeit not 24-hour, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.-----
I know the Deputy is aware but I want to inform the House more broadly. The other lab will provide elective services five days a week and the two labs together will protect better against both emergencies and elective issues. That is a major step in what the Deputy correctly acknowledges is a long-standing need.
With regard to 24-hour care, I am very open to providing the best care possible. I want to see what is in…
Following the Deputy’s question last week, and prior to that, my Department and the HSE have had extensive engagement with the organisation concerned. That engagement has focused on identifying ways the organisation can continue to deliver services, which is what we want, how it can be supported by the Department and the HSE, notwithstanding the tax treatment, and finding what other solutions are possible. Several so…
The Deputy set out the different options that were proposed. They were proposed in good faith with a view to keeping the service open and working. At some point, there is a finite number of options that can be proposed and try to be supported. They are really trying to work to find a solution. The Department and the HSE are ready to continue to engage with the charity regarding the proposed structural solutions. It w…
I do not accept that no solution has been attempted. I know it is not quite what Deputy Sherlock is saying but for the benefit of the House, proposals have been presented to GP Care For All. One is a partnership model, which is a traditional model of service delivery within general practice and also works in other areas. Another proposal is a hybrid model where the HSE contracts individual GPs to provide services to …
There is a significant ongoing programme of work to prepare for the opening of the new hospital, including integration of the three hospitals and operational commissioning. This operational commissioning includes the clinical fit-out for the entire hospital, total digital integration and staff training to ensure the hospital can open and accept patients safely and also that the workforces and cultures of the three ho…
I am advised that there is active engagement between the HSE and CHI to further revise the workforce plan. The question of staffing in all the specialisms has to come within the workforce plan. I appreciate that between now and the opening of the hospital, we might get several such letters from different specialists who are, understandably, trying to make the best case they can for the best resources for their area b…
I am anticipating that report but I have not received it yet. I have not been presented with it yet. Of course, I will look at it immediately. There are a number of different issues that are not the same thing. One is the report, and we will look at the issues that are particular to that. The others are the resources and the increase in the number of consultants, which is quite considerable as the Deputy is aware, an…
Yes, but-----
Over €200 million is invested in public oral healthcare services annually. The dental treatment services scheme provides oral healthcare, free of charge, to medical card holders aged 16 and over, as the Deputy is aware. Services are provided by dentists and clinical dental technicians who hold a contract with the HSE.
It is not mandatory for a dental practitioner operating in the State to hold a contract to operate …
I accept there has been an issue with the DTSS and the contractors numbers, notwithstanding the increase in fees and the increase of 44,000 in the number of patients being treated, which is something. Nevertheless, our figures for contractor numbers have gone down very considerably, from 1,500 in 2019 to 813 in 2024. In Cork and north Cork those numbers have gone from 35 to 26. I accept that. The new policy is design…
No, it is not sustainable and that differential in money is not fair. This is why the emergency services are attempted to be covered by the HSE. We really do need to move to that new oral policy which provides fair and open access to people across every community and in a targeted way. That is about prevention as much as about emergency care. I appreciate what the Deputy has said about accidents, which is a slightly …
In 2013, there were just over 21,000 invasive cancer cases diagnosed in Ireland. By 2022, that figure had risen to 26,000 annually. Of course, the population grew very considerably in that time as well. That increase is in line with projections made by the National Cancer Registry Ireland. With a growing and ageing population increases in cancer cases are to be expected, with cancer being more prevalent as one ages.
…
It is really important to look at where we are versus the rest of Europe in terms of the impact of the investment we deliver. The most important impact is that people are living longer and recovering from cancer and living with and beyond cancer. When we talk about investment, that is what we are trying to achieve. Of course we want to use the resources we have in a way that will deliver the best return on our invest…
I am a supporter of the public health system. That is what I am trying to drive investment into. I would like to see everybody treated in the public system. That is what this programme for Government and this House is about. It is about Sláintecare and delivering the best service in the public health system. My concern is making sure that happens.
The Deputy has cited Sweden and the UK and it is important we do that…
Excuse me.
I certainly understand the frustration and worry that comes with having difficulty in accessing GP services. That is not what we want. Timely and available access to GP services is critical to good healthcare. In rural and remote areas, in particular, general practice is often in a role of clinical leadership for patients for whom access to other services is farther away.
Being aware of this, and that the country as…
I always thank Deputies for raising practical problems and barriers I can interrogate and investigate within the Department and HSE. I do not know the status of every application so I really appreciate it. I am informed by the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, who also serves the community in Waterford, that she met HSE Estates last week on the Tallow project, which is important. She will be keeping a close eye on th…
I will indeed.
I have not seen that for some time. It is welcome to see it.
The Government was making the same case during the election and continues to make the case for employing GPs through the HSE. It does not matter where an idea comes from. Let us just do it.
Deputy McGuinness referenced barriers in his earlier intervention and I did not answer him.
To be fair, the Government has tried to place a particular focus on rural supports. The 2023 contract is an example. Practices in receip…