The HSE health regions were established to improve hospital and community healthcare services, empower local decision-making and support population-based service planning. I support this completely but I am concerned about the centralisation this may cause within the regions themselves. The north-west region often has to compete and fight over the same limited resources as we did during the hospital hub situation. Letterkenny desperately needs a diabetes integrated practice unit. Donegal, under the criteria, warrants its own paediatric endocrinologist - a full team in Letterkenny. Sharing resources with Sligo is not sufficient. Both counties have service demands and their staffing shortages are demographically different.

The Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, recognised this and the individual consideration for each county when establishing surgical hubs. Will the Taoiseach please ensure diabetes care in Donegal will be given the same separate and equal consideration?

The Deputy is right. What we did in Letterkenny and Sligo was additional, and not instead of. It was not a regional spread but it was additional. That is very important.

In relation to diabetes, the Deputy is right that there is a very good hub, the Benbulbin hub in Sligo, dealing with diabetes, respiratory and cardiology. What we want to see is that replicated in other parts of the country, such as Letterkenny. That is what we are trying to do. The Deputy will be aware that Letterkenny has the very excellent virtual community care centre in the Errigal hub, which provides countrywide leading services for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD, and other respiratory illnesses. There is a clear opportunity to build on that in the Errigal hub, which is an excellent facility across the road from Letterkenny University Hospital.