(Cavan-Monaghan): Would the Minister agree that it is highly desirable to have uniformity in the application of various schemes as between one health board and another and that there is no such uniformity at the moment?

I agree that there should be uniformity as long as it is consistent with the principle of subsidiary functions. This is where the problem arises. We must decide in the House whether we want health boards to operate with devolved responsibility. Obviously if this happens health boards will come up with some variations from time to time some of which will be quite novel and will lead to improvements in the scheme generally. I agree that as far as possible we should have uniformity of availability to the patients and people concerned.