I have a question for the Taoiseach and the Minister for Health. I have just left a meeting across the road in Buswells Hotel with representatives of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO. Many Deputies have been over there meeting with them this afternoon. The INMO is suggesting legislation to underpin and secure staffing in hospitals. I said that sounds good but legislation takes a long time. It is cumbersome and involves red tape. Surely there are shorter term ways by which we can do this - perhaps even through the budget.

It was devastating during the Covid period to see so many doctors and nurses photographed on beaches in Melbourne. There must be ancillary ways, through dealing with the cost of living or providing some allowances, that we can make it more attractive for these nursing and medicine graduates to stay here in Ireland. Legislation might be positive but it takes a long time. I want to make a pitch on this, the second-last sitting day before we head into the budgetary cycle in the autumn, that we do something in the budget that might incentivise nurses and doctors to stay here in Ireland when they graduate. This has to be much more carrot and far less stick. Surely we can do something to make sure they stay here. Inroads are being made. We can see that. The Minister is doing a lot of good work, but we need to address matter in the context of the people involved.

A lot of progress has been made. We have worked closely with the INMO. This year we sanctioned over 870 staff to fulfil safe staffing in every hospital in the country. It has been suggested we legislate for those issues. I have taken advice from Irish and international experts on safe staffing and Ireland is now seen as one of the leading countries in the world on safe staffing. The advice I have is that we are not at a point where legislation would help because it is such a new process and we are still learning and evolving. We are in ongoing discussions with the INMO on this. As Bernard Gloster and I said at its conference earlier this year, it is not something we would rule out.

Some people claim that all our student nurses are leaving the country. That is an entirely false claim. I am not suggesting the Deputy is saying this but it is something one hears. Of course some graduates leave and go to Australia, Canada or wherever, as they should. I left here after a few years and I came home. However, the vast majority of graduates are taking jobs in the HSE. Ireland is not only blessed with one of the best, most professional, highly skilled and educated nursing workforces anywhere in the world now, but we now have the highest number of nurses per capita in the EU. We are going to keep working with the INMO to keep investing in the profession.