Cabinet reshuffle - Martin has shown he can tough it out

IT comes as no surprise that Health Minister Micheál Martin is anxious to be given another portfolio when Taoiseach Bertie Ahern finally shakes up his Cabinet in September.

More than any other minister, Mr Martin has been in the firing line, drawing endless criticism over the Coalition's perceived failure to resolve the crisis in the health service.

More than any other department, it should carry a political health warning. A minefield for any ambitious politician, its pitfalls are reflected in the nation's under-staffed and overcrowded hospitals where entire wings remain closed due to lack of funding. Hit by annual ward closures, there are still more than 25,000 patients on the waiting lists.