HSE spend on agency staff nearly doubles in four years

Taoiseach Simon Harris said that there is a target of a two-thirds reduction in agency staff in 2025

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said that the Government should have instead used the money to fund permanent nursing posts, saying that it could have allowed for the hiring of more than 2,000 nurses. File photo

The amount of money being spent on agency staff by the HSE has almost doubled in the last four years.

Figures provided to Sinn Féin’s health spokesperson David Cullinane show that in 2019 the HSE spent €349m on agency staff. However, at the end of 2023, this had ballooned to €647m — an increase of 85%.

Speaking in the Dáil on Wednesday, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald described the rapid increase in agency staff spending as “staggering”. Ms McDonald said that the Government should have instead used the money to fund permanent nursing posts, saying that it could have allowed for the hiring of more than 2,000 nurses.

“The Government's spending on agency staff is a runaway train, making a mockery of public spending controls. It is not only a massive waste; it further destabilises our health service already in crisis,” Ms McDonald said. “It shows, again, that Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil cannot be trusted to spend public money wisely, competently or in the best interests of the people.”

Taoiseach Simon Harris rejected Ms McDonald’s framing, saying that the Government has increased the number of people working within the health service by 27,901 since they came to office in 2020 — with the health budget rising to over €25bn.

“As for what this means in reality, it means 9,375 additional nurses and midwives, 4,092 additional health and social care professionals, and 3,330 more doctors and dentists,” Mr Harris said.

Responding, Ms McDonald said that it was not a question of money for the HSE, but it was “how it is spent". Mr Harris said that there is a requirement for “flexibility and agility” when filling posts and that there is a target of a two-thirds reduction in agency staff in 2025.

Schools

Meanwhile, Labour leader Ivana Bacik questioned Mr Harris over figures showing that there are 44 pupils being homeschooled due to a lack of school places.

She said that the school system is facing a “crisis of teacher supply” and called for a taskforce to be established to deal with it.

In response, the Taoiseach said that a taskforce system was being examined for special schools in Dublin 15 and that it could potentially be built on for the rest of the country.