Varadkar's €100m to tackle overcrowding 'nowhere near enough after €3.8bn lost in last four years': INMO

The INMO's executive council is to consider balloting for industrial action tomorrow.

Emergency department nurses met the Minister for Health Leo Varadkar in Dublin this afternoon to discuss overcrowding in hospitals.

The INMO say that industrial action at the country's worst-affected hospitals is a "real possibility", while Minister Varadkar said there was a €100m plan in place for emergency departments.

INMO general secretary Liam Doran (pictured) said that money was not nearly enough.

"We said today to the Minister we believe the country needs at least 1,000 additional acute beds in order to make (the service) fit for purpose," he said.

"That doesn’t include the additional longstay beds we require, whether that be provided in the nursing home sector or in the public sector.

"€100m is always worth it, but when you've taken out almost €3.8bn from the health system in the last four years... €100m is a step in the right direction, but it's nowhere near enough."