An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
Dail Éireann — 2026-05-12
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Peadar Tóibín (AON), Meath West

Ambulance response times are getting longer in this country. Handover times for ambulances in hospitals are getting longer. Six months ago, 12 ambulances were stuck at Drogheda hospital for hours. At the same time, no ambulance was available in Cavan, Monaghan, Meath and Louth at all. In 2016, there were 657 deaths before ambulances arrived. In 2023, that increased to 1,108 deaths. This February, I asked the National Ambulance Service the same question. It refused to answer the question. It is an accountability-free zone, refusing to answer TDs' questions on the number of people who have died waiting for an ambulance to come. We know that there is an intense strain on ambulance services at the moment and that it is leading to death and injury. Will the Taoiseach resource these services properly? Will he make sure that the workers have their pay rise implemented? Will he sit down with the workers to negotiate the implementation of that pay rise?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-05-12/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:54:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-05-12