Mattie McGrath attacks minister over fire and ambulance crisis
Mattie McGrath spoke on 13 June 2023, criticising the minister's handling of the fire and ambulance services and backing firefighters who have walked out of talks. He described frontline crews as under-resourced, exhausted and disrespected, accusing the minister of offering only pious platitudes.
Motion and opening rebuke
McGrath opened by thanking Sinn Fein for putting down the motion and directly challenged the minister, asking if he had any shame. He reminded the House that a former minister admitted 22 years ago the problem needed to be sorted and said the situation has persisted since.
Service failures and equipment problems
He said the ambulance service has been "thrown into the ground," citing blown-out engines and staff shortages. McGrath accused the minister of hiding behind response-time statistics and supplements while paramedics are leaving and crews are fatigued from crisscrossing the country to meet targets.
Firefighters' duties and sacrifices
McGrath praised the gallant men and women who provide fire cover, noting weekly meetings and training sessions in Bray and five to six weeks of training each year. He described on-call restrictions – being within three kilometres and five minutes of station – and highlighted the skeleton service maintained in counties such as Tipperary to ensure public safety.
Accountability, negotiations and consequences
He criticised the minister for telling crews there was nothing to give and for blaming the LGMA, which he said has told them it lacks the money. McGrath urged decisive action or resignation, warned of electoral consequences and said firefighters deserve proper respect and resources rather than "pious platitudes."
We publish thousands of recordings to make Irish politics transparent and resistant to manipulation. Spotted an error? Report it — together we are building a reliable archive of Irish politics.
I too want to thank Sinn Fein to put down this motion today and ask you, Minister, have you any shame? I know you happen to respect for many groups and organisations in this country and our frontline workers across a plethora of areas, but your former colleague, Noel Dempsey, when he was Minister, admitted 22 years ago that this was a problem that had to be sorted out, and it's going on since. And you'll hear, pious platitudes, talking about enormous supplements that you're going to have. Gigantic. And you can't look after the people who save lives, who put themselves on the line to go out and replace ambulances now in so many cases because you have the ambulances service thrown into the ground, almost finished, engines blown out of them, and panaminics are leaving and fatigued, having crisscrossed the country just to fill tick boxes that you are saying to them, oh, a call was responded in so many seconds. Our minister after they went in. A con job. You're the best con asses that ever come into this house. I know you're for a long time, Minister O'Brien, and the only kind of bluffer you are, and the North Dublin Brigade before you, but this is scandalous. They walked out tonight to discuss because you wouldn't respect them. You told them you had nothing to give them. You kind of blame the LGMA. The LGMA clearly said they haven't the money to pay them. So I say to ye, either get in or get out. I put out the fire and let the fest burn. But ye don't care. But ye'll get some burning when ye go to the polls. My God, you don't pay. No fire engines are worth it to stop the fire, because people are sick, sore, and sorry, and tired of your pious plenitude, with your green tail wagging the dog, call your luck, and indeed all kind of policies that drive people off the land. And you want to look after the people who looked after us, the gallant men and women, the wonderful firemen and women. I meet them every week in Bray. They're up there for training sessions from all over the country. They do five or six weeks training each year, and they have to be on call. They can't go to a wedding, a trust master meeting, because they have to be on call, and within three kilometres, and within five minutes or less of their station. And they do that gallantly. They do that nobly. They want to do it. They don't want to be on strike. They want to be at home and have a beck and call. And I salute them for giving the skeleton service at the moment to ensure, up and down the country, especially in Tipperary, that there will be firemen and women to put out fires and look after us. But you don't deserve to be looked after. You deserve the door. Get out of this place and leave it somewhere that can run it.
Thank you for downloading 🙏
If you publish this material on social media, we would be very grateful if you tagged VideoParliament. It helps us reach more people and keep building a transparent archive of Irish politics.
