Fine Gael TD criticises €164k deal for expert
Cork South Central TD and Oireachtas health committee chair Jerry Buttimer made the claim after it emerged the lucrative salary will be provided to Lis Nixon, who is now responsible for tackling Ireland’s hospital trolley crisis.
Ms Nixon, who has taken up the post at the Department of Health’s special delivery unit, which targets waiting list and trolley count problems, previously worked on key reforms in the Canadian and NHS emergency health services.
The appointment to a group that already has 16 staff led to a public war of words between Government and opposition party TDs over Dr Reilly’s insistence the €92,000-a-year adviser salary cap has not been broken.
His spokesperson, along with Lucinda Creighton, Fine Gael TD and European affairs minister, and backbencher Derek Keating, said this was because the role is about implementing policy and not advising on it.
However, despite the apparent party line, fellow Fine Gael TD Mr Buttimer said the salary is excessive given the financial crisis.
“I think the salary is too high. I am on record as saying high salaries in the public sector need to be tackled and the Government is committed to doing so.”
His comments followed claims by Fianna Fáil health spokesman Billy Kelleher that “so far, all the special delivery unit has done is deliver special advisers to the minister”.
“This latest appointment seems to be a very expensive attempt to fix the rot at the heart of Minister Reilly’s tenure, namely the lack of any credible strategy or leadership.”
While Ms Creighton claimed on RTÉ radio that the Irish Examiner “erroneously” reported the situation, first revealed on irishhealth.com, by describing Ms Nixon as an adviser, this claim is itself incorrect.
The issues raised in the article were that another unelected official had been appointed on a lucrative taxpayer-funded salary at a time when the country is facing serious financial problems.
It also stated, as confirmed by Dr Reilly’s spokesperson, that the appointment took place externally because none of the unit’s existing 16 staff or the 100-plus health service managers and administrators on over €100,000 a year were considered up to standard.
Fine Gael backbencher Derek Keating said claims of concern over the appointment were “disingenuous, designed to score political points” and a “Fianna Fáil” attack on Government.
“Dr Reilly is working day and night to bring the health service into line.
“Fianna Fáil’s attempts to criticise the delays that exist one week, while challenging the minister for employing an expert with an exemplary track record in dealing with such crises the next, are deceitful, underhanded, and a real disservice to the Irish people.”
