Labour health spokeswoman Jan O'Sullivan firmly ruled out an all-party approach to health issues, and announced that her party will consider the issues involved at a national forum in January.
She said the idea being widely floated by some commentators that the Opposition should applaud the Government's work on health was daft. "There is enough slavish acceptance of PD policy within the Government already and the last thing people need is for the Opposition to give up too," Ms O'Sullivan added.
"It is time to question both the ideology that is driving health policy and the failure to plan and manage the structural changes implemented in the establishment of the HSE."
Labour, she said, had a fundamentally different view to offer and wanted people to engage in dialogue on how they could arrive at good and timely health services for all. The proposed forum would be part of that process.
The HSE would be three years in existence by then, said Ms O'Sullivan. "Clearly, it has not delivered the streamed-down administration that was expected. It is more top-heavy than the health boards combined ever were.
"Decision-making is like pass- the-parcel and staff at all levels are increasingly frustrated. Budgets are being controlled by sledgehammer cuts on services to patients at the time of year when there is most sickness."
There was loud applause when Seán Ó hArgáin, deputy mayor of Kilkenny, attacked the Government on the state of the cancer services. He referred to the "unforgivable death of one of my heroes, the late Susie Long, or Rosie as she became known to the people of this country".
Mr Ó hArgáin added: "I say clearly here tonight, as Susie said so bravely to the television cameras from the hospice in Harold's Cross in September, that the responsibility for her death lies with the Minister for Health, Mary Harney, and with parties of the Government, Fianna Fáil and the PDs in particular." Mr Ó hArgáin said Ms Long had died because of her lack of private health insurance, and her dogged determination to place her faith in a system that would provide the same care to everybody.
Graham Ó Maonaigh (Dublin South) produced his VHI card and said those who had one had more of a right to see a doctor and get hospital treatment.
