Fresh efforts got under way yesterday to try and get the stalled consultant contract talks restarted.
The independent chairman of the talks, barrister Mark Connaughton, held a round of separate meetings with each of the parties involved including the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA), the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) and the Health Service Executive (HSE).
He was attempting to understand the position of all sides at this point, particularly in light of a weekend vote by the IHCA to re-enter talks "unconditionally for a defined period" and he wanted to see if there was any basis for getting all sides around the table again for negotiations.
Mr Connaughton, had in a letter to all sides last week, stated that before any resumption could take place there would have to be "an unequivocal agreement between the parties that there would be unconditional negotiations for a defined period of time".
The HSE says it is still waiting for clarification from the IHCA on what it means by "unconditional". The issue is to be discussed at a meeting of the HSE board tomorrow. Minister for Health Mary Harney has already made it clear that if talks resume they will have to have a tight timeframe. She said on Monday she didn't want to go around a table again "with no deadlines", having already waited over two years for negotiations to come to a successful conclusion.
Meanwhile the steps which the Government might take to impose a new contract on consultants if they don't agree one, will be discussed at today's Cabinet meeting.
Minister for Finance Brian Cowen said yesterday: "None of us in Cabinet are interested in fruitless discussions, we want to see real progress quickly. The health Minister has outlined how she sees the situation and we will discuss it tomorrow but there is no difference in the Cabinet about the substance of what is needed or what we have to do . . . the tactics will be discussed tomorrow".
Speaking while attending a meeting of finance ministers in Brussels, he added: "It is clear that we need an agenda, we need a time limit on discussions if there are to be discussions and we need real progress, we need to see this matter resolved as soon as possible."
Ms Harney claimed there was no difference between her and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern on how to deal with the impasse over talks with the consultants on a new contract.
On Monday, as she indicated she was going to press ahead with plans to impose a new contract on consultants if they did not negotiate one within a tight timeframe, Mr Ahern said the negotiations should be allowed to proceed. And he said it was "always a fatal thing to do before you have negotiations to declare what you would do if it didn't work".
This is despite the fact that Ms Harney has been threatening to impose a new contract on consultants since last year if they failed to agree one.
She is to bring "an outline timetable and timeframe for the introduction of a new contract for new consultants coming into the Irish healthcare system" to the Government next Tuesday.
Tánaiste Michael McDowell also denied the Taoiseach and Minister for Health were at odds on how to deal with the consultants. He said he spoke to them both and they are "absolutely and 100 per cent ad idem in how this matter be handled". He said it was the duty of the Government to bring about reform in the health service and no one could have a veto over that.