There are many commitments in the programme for Government on the health service, particularly in terms of additional recruitment of nurses. As the Taoiseach knows, the INMO has decided to ballot on industrial action. What I want to bring to the Taoiseach's attention is that one of the key issues facing our hospitals is the fact there are more than 1,000 vacancies in terms of nurses and midwives, which is an extraordinary number. After the latest recruitment drive by the HSE to address these vacancies only 85 positions were filled. This is an incredible outcome and will impact on our ability to deal with waiting lists, waiting times and the quality of care. The vacancies are in key areas such as intensive care, paediatrics and theatre nurses, where the turnover is significant. In short, there is a manpower issue in terms of nursing. There is an overreliance on agency nursing. With regard to the commitment in the programme for Government, how does the Taoiseach intend to address this core issue of 1,000 vacancies on the front line?

The Minister has the budget to be able to recruit significant numbers of nurses. There is a pressure point here because nurses coming out of training from the 13 centres in Ireland are very much in demand because of their quality, integrity and capability, and Deputy Martin knows this. I happened to be in NUI Galway recently at a graduation, and all 60 nurses who came through the graduation are staying in Ireland. We have 13 centres for providing nurse training and, as Deputy Martin is aware, they are under pressure from opportunities being offered in Great Britain, the Middle East and Australia. It is always a real challenge. The Minister and the HSE were disappointed that they did not get the numbers they thought they might to come back, but they are working on it very assiduously.