Future restrictions and healthcare capacity
Speaking to Pat Kenny I again raised the issue of how little capacity has been increased in our healthcare system despite the billions spent on our pandemic response. Full interview here.
NEWSTALK – Irish healthcare system
With waiting lists increasing and positions remaining unfilled across our healthcare system, we need to be told what are the impediments to reform that led the Chairperson and Executive Director of the Sláintecare Implementation Advisory Council to resign having concluded “that the requirements for implementing this unprecedented programme for change are seriously lacking”.
Restrictions and hospital capacity
Only 19 additional critical care beds have been developed during the past 12 months (278 in Sep 2020, 297 in Aug 2021). Given the expected demand on our health system this winter, the failure to substantially increase capacity is worrying.
Climate Action & Agriculture
When talking about reducing Carbon emissions from agriculture, we need to consider that the Irish national herd has scarcely increased since 1975, the specific impact of methane on global warming and the risk of displacing Irish produce with South American produce with far greater emissions.
We don’t even yet know the metric the Govt will use to measure greenhouse gas emissions in its Carbon budget, and the metric used will have a large impact on the targets to by met by various sectors, especially agriculture.
My interview on RTE Radio today.