"Ill Tempered" Cowen Defends Health Spending In Rowdy Daíl

The Taoiseach was forced to defend the failure of the Government to spend money promised for certain areas of the Health service today.

Amidst angry scenes in the Dail, the Fine Gael Leader Enda Kenny told the House that millions of euro promised for palliative care has disappeared into "black holes".

A stern Brian Cowen, who was later described by Mr Kenny as "Ill tempered", said the Government had to deal with budgetary constraints on a monthly basis, the Taoiseach also added that he would silence the opposition if they continued to shout him down.

Afterwards, Fine Gael leader, Enda Kenny accused the Taoiseach of being unable to answer simple questions surrounding the use of monies allocated in 2006 and 2007 to palliative care and mental health services.

Mr Kenny said: "Front line services in palliative care and in the mental health area are suffering as their budgets get hived off by the HSE for other use. These monies - €18m per annum to help recruit 130 extra staff to provide palliative care and €50m per annum towards mental health services - have not been spent on front line services.

"Less than half of the approved palliative care posts had been filled by May 2008 while only half of the mental health allocation has been spent. That means that money earmarked for specific front line services over the last two years has disappeared in to the black hole that is the HSE."

Mr Kenny further pointed out that the Fianna Fail leader failed to back up comments made by his new junior minister for Mental Health John Moloney, who had spoke of plans for "front-loading” the unspent millions using them for 2008 and 2009 instead.

"When the Taoiseach was unable to answer where this money had gone or whether he would be supporting John Moloney's pledge he ended up resorting to ill tempered bluff and bluster and threatening the Opposition benches.

"Simple questions should have simple answers. Unfortunately when it comes to this Government and this Taoiseach it is more of the same after 11 years - lots of talk, very little action," said Mr Kenny.

(DW)