I acknowledge the Irish women's darts team and officials who are in the Public Gallery. They are the current world champions. Comhgairdeas agus fáilte.

Sixteen years ago, Fine Gael said it would end the scandal of people waiting on hospital trolleys. Yesterday in University Hospital Limerick, there were 130 patients on trolleys. That is the highest number ever recorded at any hospital in the State and a damning indictment of the Government's health policies. At the health committee today, the leaders of the HSE and the Department of Health have confirmed that the Government has massively underfunded the health service in budget 2024. This is the moment where the Government has thrown in the towel on health. It is ordinary people who will pay the price for this. What does the Taoiseach say to the people of Limerick and people across the State who will find themselves on hospital trolleys on his Government's watch?

Unfortunately, we are still experiencing a serious problem with emergency department overcrowding in quite a number of hospitals across the State. It is important to say and to know that there are approximately 120 fewer patients waiting for beds today than would have been the case this day last year. That did not happen by accident; it is because of the additional resources, staff and beds the Government has provided. There is more to come, including in Limerick where there is a 96-bed block under construction.