Laugh at Manuel ...but Irish health system is Fawlty

POOR Spaniards have been unfairly stereotyped as silly jackasses for donkey's years.

I blame English actor Andrew Sachs for kickstarting it all, with his hilarious portrayal of bumbling Spanish waiter Manuel in Fawlty Towers.

But our Mediterranean cousins are enjoying the proverbial last laugh, thanks to their first-class public health system which puts the HSE in the shade.

You will never find yourself literally killing precious time in the A&E in Spain, nor would you end up on a trolley overnight.

Their government even provides subsidised prescription pills, which are as cheap as chips.

I've had several positive firsthand experiences with the excellent Spanish health system.

Madrid's population may be 6.7 million, but that never stopped me from waltzing through an ER there.

Our Government has now essentially admitted the HSE is unable to keep up with the Spanish, whose health system is head and shoulders above our own.