On Wednesday last I raised the crisis which is developing in the health services because of the shortage of junior doctors. I stated that there would be at least 400 vacancies and that this will have a devastating effect on front-line services beyond 11 July. I asked the Taoiseach to make a statement on this and he declined to do so. It struck me that the Taoiseach did not know what was happening. It struck me also that the Minister for Health did not know what was happening.

Did it ever strike Deputy Adams that he does not know what is happening?

The Taoiseach stated that the Minister for Health would deal with this on Friday last. Today, without the heckling, listen to what I am going to say to you. You did not come into this House.

Sorry, through the Chair to the Taoiseach.

I am sorry. Sin maith go leor, ach níor chuir tú isteach ar an Aire nuair a bhí ag chuir isteach ormsa. You never cut in on the Minister when he was cutting in.

I will protect Deputy Adams's right to speak without interruption.

Go raibh maith agat, thank you.

Without coming in here, without leaving himself open to questions and to scrutiny, on RTE last night the Minister for Health stated that we may well end up with some accident and emergency departments which cannot be safely manned. He stated that he could certainly say this much, that it will not be any of the major ones, and that it is the small rural hospitals where we are going to have real difficulties. He then went on to say that the crisis will be fixed in so far as it can be fixed.

I asked all the chaps and chapettes who are heckling here last week to go in and check what is happening with their local hospitals. This is not good enough. The Government needs to allow a debate on this issue and the Taoiseach needs to be able to tell us and the Deputies here.

A question please.

What hospitals may not be safely manned, mar dhea? What hospitals will not be safely staffed? The Taoiseach should tell that to the other TDs here today.

I hope Deputy Adams did not slip into a former mode there by stating, "listen to what I am going to say to you".

Or else.

Or else.

First, this problem in the shortage of non-consultant hospital doctors or, as they are called, "junior doctors", is not related to funding and is not related to a recruitment embargo or a moratorium. It is related to an inability to attract enough of doctors to our hospitals. It is an issue that has affected not only this country, but other countries as well.

Second, the Minister for Health is working intensively with the HSE, with his Department, with the Medical Council and a range of other bodies to try to solve this problem before 11 June——

July.

——when the changeover date occurs.

Third, I want Deputy Adams to understand, in fairness, that the HSE mounted a serious recruitment campaign in India and Pakistan and several senior consultants and a number from the HSE travelled to India and Pakistan. That recruitment drive identified 400 suitable and qualified doctors who could work in Irish hospitals and who are interested in coming here. In many cases these are doctors with quite a few years of experience gained in hospitals already.

The issue is to see how best to secure these doctors to work in Ireland in a manner that will give complete assurance regarding the safety of patients and the standards that are required. I am sure Deputy Adams would not require anything else. The problem centres around the fact that under the present arrangements such doctors would have to do an examination that is not totally suitable and that legislation does not allow for a temporary registration facility which is the best way to accommodate incoming doctors in that regard. While the Minister, Deputy Reilly, is currently putting in place a facility to allow the doctors to face an exam more tailored to their level of experience, he may well amend the law to provide for a temporary registration system for doctors. It is not about a moratorium, funding or an inability to recruit. It is about finding a facility that we have let slip in this country by the abolition of temporary registration and the fact that in many cases, as the Minister has pointed out, doctors required to do an examination across the entire medical spectrum might not pass such an examination. The example he has given is that someone doing surgery might be required to pass an examination on something they have not had surgical experience of for quite some time.

It is like politics.

The Minister, Deputy Reilly, has identified this problem and the delivery of a solution to the problem is his number one priority. He is receiving every assistance from those involved. However, when speaking on RTE last night the Minister made it clear that it is unlikely he will be able to fill all the posts by 11 July given the scale and the nature of the problem he faces and he outlined what the facts are in this regard. I wish to make the point clear: it is not about recruitment inability, a moratorium or funding. It is about the fact that we do not have a temporary registration facility, which other European countries use to fill spaces at the changeover of non-consultant hospital doctors, in the way we should have.

The Minister has identified the root of the problem. There was a recruitment drive in India and Pakistan and 400 were identified. It is to have the facility now that will allow the Minister to accommodate this and the Government decided on that this morning. Let me assure Deputy Adams there will be no compromise on either quality or safety nor should there be.

It is absolute rubbish to say there will be no compromise. We held this exercise last week as well. I asked a straight question about what hospitals will not be safely staffed. The Taoiseach did not answer the question. The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation stated today that 329 citizens are on trolleys in hospitals throughout the State. This is before the crisis kicks in. The fact is there are people out there. As a health professional the Minister, Deputy Reilly, should have known this before he took up his position as Minister. He was briefed and I have before me the redacted freedom of information request and his briefing. One the first day he came in as Minister he was told about this crisis. Approximately 150 of these doctor positions were substantially vacant and now it has risen to 400. The question was about which hospitals will not be safely staffed. People need to know. I have other questions.

I am sorry Deputy. We are over time.

I will chance my arm. Will the Taoiseach ensure that nurses are given an enhanced role and that consultants will fulfil their contracts and carry out their work in public hospitals? It is work they are contracted to do.

Deputy Adams strayed from his original question into the consultants contract issue. I assure the Deputy as I answer today I cannot give him the information on what hospitals will be disrupted by virtue of the non-consultant hospital doctor problem.

The Taoiseach cannot assure us there will be none.

When the Minister stated there will be no compromise on safety, standard or quality, he was right.

That is what the Taoiseach says.

We cannot have a situation where doctors are employed in an unsupervised capacity in hospitals. It will be a couple of weeks before the Minister will be in a position to inform the House of that. He has identified the problem and he has identified the solution. The Government made a decision on it this morning. As this moves through the system and when the Minister becomes aware of which hospitals are not capable or do not have the capacity to provide a supervised setting for non-consultant hospital doctors, he will so inform the House. However, there will be no compromise on safety or standard.

A man called Peter Sherlock died while waiting for an ambulance. How many times will this happen again?

I am sorry Deputy. You are out of order. I call Deputy Ross.