Is the Minister familiar with the position which obtains in Galway Regional Hospital, referred to in this question and which is also the subject of Question No. 59, where patients have been refused admittance in very large numbers and where there is a real crisis due to the lack of staff and the effects of the Minister's decision in regard to financial allocation to the Western Health Board region? Is the Minister aware of the serious concern which has been expressed on more than one occasion by the senior consultants in the hospital and is he also aware that it is now accepted that the only way to gain admittance to the hospital is to go into the casualty department?

I do not accept that there is a massive shortage of staff in Galway Regional Hospital. There are 1,434 people working in the hospital. Indeed, Galway Regional Hospital is one of the hospitals where throughput has increased in the current year. I accept that in order to live within the allocation the Western Health Board have been obliged to close a number of beds for the remainder of this year. This is a temporary measure and, hopefully, those beds will be opened at the end of this month.