Hospital chiefs to meet with Varadkar

The new health minister has taken the unusual move of inviting up to 50 hospital chiefs to meet him this morning to "let them know he is backing them in their fight for resources".

Ironically, the meeting takes place at a time when the HSE is facing an end-of-year deficit of up to €500m and in the context of the Department of Health warning that up to 300 beds will close and 2,400 fewer hi-tech operations will take place next year if the Government insists on cuts of more than €200m to ensure spending comes in under a defined ceiling.

The meeting also coincides with efforts by Health Minister Leo Varadkar to secure a €500m supplementary budget estimate this year.