Just one new A&E consultant post has been approved since 2003, Labour claimed today.
Party deputy leader and health spokesperson Liz McManus based her claim on HSE figures which, she said, show although 52 new consultant posts have been given the green light so far this year none were for "our stricken A&E departments".
Accusing health minister Mary Harney of failing to grasp "the severity of the crisis in our hospitals' A&E wards", Ms McManus said previous reports have shown "we simply don't have enough A&E consultants, and there are some suggestions that the numbers need to be doubled."
She pledged that the Labour Party would "prioritise the delivery of an effective, well resourced healthcare system".