asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the absence of long stay geriatric facilities in Tralee, County Kerry; and the action he proposes to take to provide the necessary facilities.

The provision of longstay geriatric facilities in Tralee, County Kerry is a matter for the Southern Health Board.

I accept that there is a need to further develop services for the elderly generally including those in the Southern Health board area. However, the speed and extent of development of either institutional or community facilities is dependent on the availability of the required financial resources.

Can I have simple clarification? The Minister is allowing a lot of responsibility to the health board. Is he not accepting that at the end of the day he has the overall responsibility in relation to the provisions for the health services? In admitting that there are no long stay geriatric facilities available in Tralee is the Minister aware that there are over 100 beds which are uncommissioned in the general hospital in Tralee and will he see his way to commissioning those beds to make up for the shortfall in long stay geriatric requirements?

It is primarily a matter for the Southern Health Board and while I take responsibility for the allocation to the board, it is a matter for them to decide within that allocation what services they wish to provide.

Does the Minister accept that as the funds are provided by the Department of Health and are provided on a breakdown basis in the Book of Estimates, he is in a position by direct intervention to provide for the further commissioning of beds? Is he aware also that at this time there is a proposal by a private hospital institution in the same town to spend somewhere between £250,000 and £500,000 in improving their facilities while in excess of 100 beds in the most modern hospital in the country are not allowed to be commissioned?

I am aware that there are 30 beds for geriatric patients not commissioned in the hospital in Tralee. We can certainly look at that in the context of next year's Estimate but as of now the funding is not available.