Ambulance Service
Dail Éireann — 2026-04-21
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David Cullinane (SF), Waterford

The problem is that the National Ambulance Service is massively understaffed. I put down a parliamentary question to which the Minister's office responded a number of weeks ago. In 2025, the HSE target was to have 4,162 whole-time-equivalent paramedics working in the National Ambulance Service. The number for this year is 2,657. By 2026, the target was to have 4,780. The number is estimated to be 2,920 by the end of the year. By 2028, it is meant to be over 6,000. At best, we are going to hit 3,500. We are somewhere between 2,000 and 2,500 paramedics short of what we need. That is leading to burnout and fatigue, which is why there has been vote after vote where paramedics, EMTs and others have said that they have had enough and cannot take any more. As far as I can see, they do not have confidence in the management of the National Ambulance Service because clearly if there are votes coming back all of the time where they are voting against recommendations and for industrial action, there is a problem. The problem is burnout and fatigue and can only be fixed by more capacity and better resources. I appeal to the Minister to do everything possible to support our paramedics and avert industrial action.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-04-21/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-21T01:01:08+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-21