Doherty accuses Varadkar of ‘partitionism’ as he compares life expectancies in Ireland and 'Britain'

The exchange occurred when the Sinn Féin spokesperson criticised the Government’s record prior to the publication of its summer economic statement yesterday.

Addressing Deputy Doherty, the Taoiseach stated: “He advocates for the National Health Service system, which is the system his party ran in Northern Ireland for a long time when it comes to health, but does he know that Irishmen and Irishwomen live two years longer than is the case in Britain?”

Deputy Doherty interrupted to state that ‘Irishmen and Irishwomen are in Belfast and Derry as well’.

The Taoiseach asked Deputy Doherty if he knew that ‘when you adjust for disability and life years, Ireland outperforms Northern Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland’.

To this Deputy Doherty responded: “What a partitionist statement.”

However, the Taoiseach doubled down, claiming the NHS system ‘does not work’.

“Does he know, for example, that waiting lists in Ireland, high as they are, are 66 per cent lower than in Northern Ireland, where the Deputy's party ran the health service for most of 20 years, and 84 per cent lower than in England?

"Why does he want to adopt systems we know do not work?” he asked.

Back in May Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) director Professor Alan Barrett advised the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement (GFA) that in 2018, life expectancy at birth in the South exceeded that of the North by 1.4 years.

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