Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Health, Billy Kelleher TD, has expressed outrage at reports today that the HSE service plan was changed before it was officially published to hide the severity of cuts in the health service next year.
Deputy Kelleher commented: “The report in today’s Sunday Business Post, which reveals that Ministers forced the wording of the HSE Service Plan for 2014 to be changed is extraordinary.
“Coming just a week after it emerged that the scale of the deficit this year was much greater than the figure outlined in the Dáil by Minister Reilly, this raises serious questions about the accuracy of what people are being told about our health services.
“Morale is at an all-time low in the health service, with workers having lost all confidence in Minister Reilly a long time ago. This morning’s claims will only add to the sense of disillusionment that exists right across the service.
“By forcing the presentation of the HSE Service Plan to be changed for political purposes, the Government have also implicated senior HSE Executives.
“I am calling on Minister Reilly to make a statement on today’s revelations and spell out exactly how the savings he is targeting are actually going to be achieved.”