asked the Minister for Health if he will give an assurance that all moneys collected by the new health taxation will be spent to improve the health services.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Health Taxation.
13.
Income from health contributions is applied towards the overall cost of health services including the cost of improvements in the services.
In view of the fact that the Minister quite rightly considered this inevitable, unanswerable and an automatic development, and in view of the fact that he will have something in the region of £20 million surplus to his needs for the immediate scheme, would the Minister not consider extending the scheme to include the groups mentioned in the previous question?
The Deputy is misreading the situation. There will be no such surplus. The Deputy and every other Deputy would have to compare the receipts from the new pay-related health contributions which will be introduced on 1 April next with the receipts from the existing health contributions scheme as it would be in operation next year. It would almost certainly have been increased from January anyway. One would have to compare like with like—the income which would have been coming in from the existing health contribution scheme next year, with what will be coming in from the pay-related scheme.
In view of the fact that the Minister does not deny that he made that statement three or four years ago, that it was inevitable, unanswerable and should be automatic, will the Minister agree that he was indulging in the most complete, cynical and irresponsible——
Question No. 14.
——game of politics with these three classes, widows, those suffering from long-term illnesses, and persons suffering from——
Question No. 14. That is a matter for argument.