Consultants and GPs must take medicine

THE gravy leaks out of all sorts of strange places. Everybody is now familiar with the gravy flowing through the ranks of senior politicians and public servants. But what about other sections of the elite?

Did you know that the state pays pensions to doctors who work in private practice? General practitioners, who are contracted to treat medical card patients, also get a little something put into a pension pot for their troubles.

Think about it. The doctors are in private practice; one element of their income is a state contract. As well as paying them generously for undertaking the contract, the state tops up the payment with an extra 10% towards a pension.