asked the Minister for Health when an adequate dental service will be provided for medical card holders and their dependants and for primary school children.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Dental Service.
55.
As stated in the course of my speech when introducing the recent Supplementary Estimate for my Department, there are shortcomings in the dental services at present available to eligible persons, because it has not been possible, so far, to allocate to them the large sums which would be needed to make them adequate. Nevertheless, there has been in recent years a gradual but significant improvement in these services, particularly the dental services for children, by the expansion of wholetime dental staffs and the provision of improved clinic facilities by health boards. The extent to which further improvements can be made in the coming year, having regard to the available resources, is at present being reviewed.
Would the Parliamentary Secretary agree with me when I say that the people I mention here—medical card holders and their dependants and primary school children—have a statutory right to full dental services and they are not being provided with these services at the moment?
I agree entirely with the Deputy, but I did say that these services are being provided as far as practicable and possible.
In view of the fact that this is a statutory right and that it is not being given to the people, would the Parliamentary Secretary agree it would be possible in law for an eligible person to apply to the court for an order of mandamus against the appropriate health board or the Minister for Health, or both, because of the failure to provide the services and, if those responsible still fail to provide the services, they would be either in contempt of court or have to repeal the obligation that is on them.
Unfortunately for me, I am not, like the Deputy, a lawyer.
Would the Parliamentary Secretary agree that, whatever the rights, people are not getting equal rights? There are parts of the country less well catered for than other parts. As far as the school dental service is concerned in my constituency, it is a very poor service and falls very far behind the even inadequate service provided in other parts of the country.
I can only say that what is happening in Donegal is also unfortunately happening in Cork. What we are trying to do in Cork is to do the best we can.
There is no such thing as equal rights.
May I ask the Parliamentary Secretary if he would arrange with the Government to devote some of the £27½ million raised by taxation the other night to the dental services in order to improve them? No reply.