Fine Gael to focus on health service woes ahead of election

FINE Gael is set to turn the focus of its anti-Government fire from consumer concerns to health service shortcomings as the pre-election battle hots-up.

The main opposition party plans to use a mini-conference in Portlaoise tomorrow to open a new front against the Government on medical care.

Buoyed by a poll surge fuelled by its “rip-off Ireland” campaign, the party is poised to use the two-day gathering as the launchpad for the longest election campaign in Irish political history.

The focus on health care will be underlined by a key note address from HSE chief executive, Prof Brendan Drumm.

A party spokesman said: “The Government missed the boat on health reform and patients are now paying the price for that.

“When the money was flooding in around four or five years ago that’s when the Government should have insisted on wide scale reforms in return for higher wages.

“Instead they just gave money hand-over-fist because they were scared of rocking the boat before the last general election.”

Crime will also be a major theme of the meeting, with a review planned of Fine Gael’s antisocial behaviour campaign, A Night in the Life.

The event is also being primed as a staging post for the General Election campaign proper, as the national poll must be called in the next 20 months.

The drive will gather pace tonight with a selection convention for Jim Mitchell’s old seat in the Taoiseach’s Dublin Central constituency.

Fianna Fail tried to use a similar “think-in” meeting in Cavan last week to relaunch the Government in a more “family-friendly” light, but the meeting was overshadowed by fall-out from RTE’s controversial Rip Off Republic programme.

The PDs will also hold a much more low-key event this week when they met at a hotel opposite Government Building’s tomorrow.

Medical care will feature strongly there too, with Tánaiste and Health Minister Mary Harney set to restate her commitment to build a better health service and provide a better standard of living for the elderly, party sources said.