THE GOVERNMENT is expected to reduce health service spending by nearly €200 million next year.
However, when existing financial deficits carried into next year and other unavoidable cost pressures are taken into account, the amount available to the Health Service Executive to provide healthcare could be reduced by €600 million to €700 million.
The Government is also expected to announce next week it wants employment levels in the health service to be reduced by more than 3,000 next year.
As part of the budget, the Government is to set new employment ceilings for the main areas in the public service.
At present there are about 105,000 full-time equivalent staff in the health service.
Under the Government’s reforms, employment levels in the service will be cut to about 102,000 next year. This figure will be further reduced to about 96,000 in the years ahead.
It is unclear how many health service personnel will leave before the introduction of pension changes next February. About 4,000 staff are understood to have expressed an interest but this does not mean that all will retire by then.
It is understood the core budget for the Health Service Executive will be cut by about €180 million as part of the budget for 2012. However, the HSE is also expected to carry forward a financial deficit of more than €200 million from this year into 2012.
The HSE received more supplementary funding this week to ease its financial pressures for 2011. Some €58 million was announced on Wednesday and a further €50 million was promised yesterday.
Demand-led schemes such as applications for new medical cards will cost an additional €160 million, while the Government’s decision to increase VAT by 2 per cent will add about €50 million to costs in the health service.
The cost of incremental pay increases due for staff will also have to be taken into account.
The introduction of the new EU directive on agency workers – of which the HSE is one of the largest employers – will cost the health authority about €33 million. Highly placed sources said the net overall reduction in funding next year could be up to €700 million.
Although a Cabinet meeting is scheduled for Monday, the details of the budget were finalised in most areas yesterday, according to Government sources. Monday’s meeting would be “more about procedure than anything else”, said a spokesman.
On Monday afternoon, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin will reveal in the Dáil details of the Government’s comprehensive spending review and will detail the expenditure cuts that are proposed to meet the adjustments demanded as part of Ireland’s bailout.
Minister for Finance Michael Noonan will deliver the traditional Budget day speech on Tuesday afternoon, which will set out the increased taxation the Government intends to impose, along with other key financial measures.
Following the removal of the Labour whip from Tommy Broughan this week, at least three of those elected for Fine Gael or Labour last February may vote against the Budget: Mr Broughan, former minister of state Willie Penrose and Denis Naughten.
Newly elected Labour TD for Dublin West, Patrick Nulty, is considered one of the backbenchers most likely to vote against the budget, particularly if it involves social welfare cuts.
Yesterday Mr Nulty said he would judge the budget “in its totality” before deciding on how to vote on it. He said it should tax high earners and use the money raised to protect frontline health services.
- Veterinary inspectors at meat plants have voted overwhelmingly in favour of industrial action over Department of Agriculture proposals to downgrade their roles.
Almost 90 per cent of temporary veterinary inspectors who are members of the Veterinary Ireland union voted for the action, up to and including strike action.
The savings proposals include replacing the vets at the plants with non-veterinary technical staff from the department.
