Taoiseach Bertie Ahern insisted the Government had a mandate to build additional private and public hospitals during a Dáil row about co-location facilities.
Labour leader Pat Rabbitte, who rejected as "rubbish" the Taoiseach's insistence that he had such a mandate, claimed the co-location projects of building private hospitals on public hospital grounds would lead to a two-tier A&E service.
He also accused the Taoiseach of using "sleeveen, weasel words" about the HSE, which was due to sign the contracts for the facilities.
Mr Ahern in turn accused the Labour leader of "opposing and trying to block the Government hand over fist" in its efforts to create more public beds in the short-term to people on waiting lists.
He added that Fine Gael and Labour had opposing views on co-location.
Mr Rabbitte claimed that a doctor at a medical conference had said that under the co-location system patients who had insurance would be admitted directly to the private facility while those who could not afford private medicine would "continue to languish in A&E departments while awaiting a bed in the public system".
He asked Mr Ahern: "Will you further worsen the two-tier divide in the Irish health service by signing contracts for which you have no mandate, for which you did not seek a mandate, which are not in the Programme for Government and on which you are proceeding on the eve of a general election?"
Mr Ahern said he was not signing any contracts; the HSE was signing eight contracts. There were currently 2,500 private beds in public hospitals with no access for public patients.
"We are endeavouring to build co-located private hospitals so that those private beds can move out of public hospitals and be designated private hospitals. The same consultants would be able to work in their public and private hospitals."
He added that "it will not affect A&E services".
It was "unacceptable for the Taoiseach to come in with sleeveen, weasel words about the HSE", said Mr Rabbitte.
"We will do everything we can to examine the tax sections that allow the write-down in capital allowances to the investors who will build these super private clinics", and "if it is legally possible . . . we will make those changes if this side of the house is returned to government".
The Taoiseach pointed out that those "same tax incentives have given us 7,500 nursing home units".
Mr Rabbitte "may say I am using weasel, sleeveen words but that does not take away from the facts of the case".
Accidents and other emergencies would continue to go through A&E units.
He added: "We have a mandate to build additional private hospitals and public hospitals."
Mr Ahern then challenged Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny as to whether his party was opposed to private medicine and if he would change the tax law like the Labour leader pledged.
"Will Fine Gael change the tax regulations? What is Fine Gael's policy?"
When Mr Kenny said Fine Gael "is opposed to the sale of public lands on public hospitals for private hospitals", Mr Ahern said "that is a different issue".
The Taoiseach added that the Opposition parties "have two completely alternative views".
