Fine Gael will tonight begin a second assertive Dáil attack in two months on Minister for Health Mary Harney with a private members' motion highlighting claimed failures in the health services.
The Minister was the subject of a no-confidence motion before Christmas and tonight faces a motion that highlights difficulties with regard to commitments to cystic fibrosis and mental health services. The two-day debate will see Fine Gael criticisms being spearhead by its health spokesman Dr James Reilly who will claim that Ms Harney has had an inauspicious start to 2008.
The Cabinet will finalise the wording of a counter-motion at its weekly meeting this morning before mounting a strong defence of its record in both areas.
"It's been a case of 'new year same old story' as far as the health services are concerned. The suffering and frustration of people with cystic fibrosis took centre stage on the national airwaves making Government failures to provide adequate isolation facilities and develop a long-promised specialist centre painfully tangible," Dr Reilly said.
He said a two-fold response was required: in the shortterm isolation facilities were required; in the longer term, all of the recommendations of the Pollock report into cystic fibrosis services needed to be implement.
On the second part of the motion, he said: "A January report also revealed that money realised from the sale of assets in the mental health service was not being ring-fenced for reinvestment in the psychiatric services and the mental health budget hived off for meeting current spending deficits. This is a downright betrayal of patients and a U-turn on the Government's own policy, A Vision for Change."
