Labour minister Kathleen Lynch says Fine Gael stalled free GP care plans

Fine Gael delayed the introduction of free GP care to the under-6s and over-70s by three years, a Labour minister has claimed.

Although free GP care was rolled out in July, it has been revealed that the plan was fiercely opposed by the main party of Government.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, Kathleen Lynch, the minister with responsibility for mental health, primary care, and social care, said free GP care was the “cause of most angst” during almost five years of the Coalition.

The first step in free GP care for all was brought in over the summer, and Budget 2016 set up a provision to extend the scheme to all children under 12 years of age.

However, this is subject to negotiations with the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) and, given the difficulties in negotiating the new contract with GPs for the first phase, it is likely that the further roll-out will involved protracted talks.

Ms Lynch said: “This is probably the only political point I am going to make to you, the under-6s and the over-70s would have been done in the first two years of Government but for the opposition of Fine Gael. It was the cause of most angst.

Health Minister Leo Varadkar, who established the scheme, recently said 214,000 people have signed up for the service.

Asked whether former Health Minister James Reilly was to blame for delaying the introduction of the scheme, Ms Lynch said it went wider than that in the Fine Gael party and, even as the plan was on the verge of introduction earlier this year, it still came up against major opposition.

The Cork north-central TD said: “Remember we had government collective responsibility, you have to remember that, and even up to just before that we were still getting, you know, ‘The doctors are going to be overwhelmed, this is going to happen, that’s going to happen’.”

Ms Lynch said the Labour Party had been the main driver in government of holding the historic marriage-equality referendum this year.

“The other thing that astonishes me, despite all the photographs that you will see, is that for one single second, do you think that we would have the referendum on same-sex marriage without the Labour party,” she asked.

Separately, Ms Lynch said she would not rule out running for party leader if Joan Burton were to step aside.

“Do I have enough confidence in myself to say that I would like to be leader of the Labour party? All I can say to you is this, is that any job I have every taken on I hope I have been successful at and I’m sure if that [Labour leadership] were to present itself, that I would work just as hard in order to make that a success.”

Labour party colleagues Jed Nash, Alan Kelly, and Jan O’Sullivan, are among those who have also expressed interest in the leadership.

Ms Lynch said: “In reality you have to see what the circumstances are at the time.”