It is generally accepted that serious challenges face the health services on a daily basis. These challenges affect patients, staff and the wider community. Staff are firefighting on an ongoing basis. They are burned out, frustrated and fed up continuously holding services together with minimum resources. Emergency departments are overrun, with trolley numbers in January of this year at an all-time high of almost 14,000. Waiting lists are similarly as high, and outpatient numbers are well in excess of half a million. We have reviews and investigations into hospitals like University Hospital Limerick, Portiuncula hospital and Mayo general hospital. The Government and health service management threw a grenade into this already chaotic situation with the pay and numbers strategy. That strategy abolished more than 2,000 posts, keeping additional pressure and stress on remaining staff. These posts were fully funded and filled. If that was not enough, on Friday last, the chief executive of the Health Service Executive, in what was an aggressive, maverick and indeed bully boy diktat, instructed his regional executive officers to introduce an extended working day and extended working week for staff. That diktat is in breach of good industrial relations practice and, more importantly, is in breach of the framework agreement between the Health Service Executive and its staff and unions. It was done without any consultation whatsoever. This bombshell was thrown into an already fraught situation and has the potential to cause serious harm, not only to staff but also to patients already waiting far too long for treatments. The Fórsa trade union, representing its members, responded predictably and reasonably when it said that if this instruction is not suspended, it will necessitate an appropriate response. This is shorthand for industrial action. In view of the clear breach of agreements and non-consultation with staff and unions, and in view of the potential for this diktat to create chaos in the health service and, indeed, seriously impact on patient safety, will the Government instruct the chief executive officer of the Health Service Executive to withdraw that instruction immediately?

Sentiment score: -0.02

The Minister has not addressed the question at all. In fact, she has avoided the question. My question was whether her Government would instruct the chief executive officer to withdraw the instruction. Today's edition of The Irish Times reports that her Government instructed the HSE only a few weeks ago - in January of this year - on this very subject. I ask the Minister again to address that question. Does the Minister accept this instruction from the chief executive is a breach of the framework agreement? Does she even accept it is in breach of good industrial relations practice? This action by the chief executive officer follows hard on the heels of a similar instruction by the management of the Department of Social Protection recently. It begs the question: has the Government now embarked on a policy of confrontation with public servants and their trade unions?

Sentiment score: 0.07