Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank our guests and as I am conscious of the limited time, I will ask four sets of questions.

First, I will ask about an area of concern, that is, the permitted use constraint on which we have heard multiple interpretations here. I believe it was mentioned by one of the speakers today that this related to ensuring that this would be a maternity hospital. However, as there is language which refers to "legally permissible healthcare services, including research, by a maternity, gynaecology, obstetrics and neonatal hospital", there is a line within permitted use that makes it very clear what kind of hospital it is. The question has been what exactly does the phrase "clinically appropriate" add. As an example of the interpretative dangers, we have had one legal advice, I think to the NMH, that they had first heard it as "all clinically appropriate and legally permissible healthcare services" and others have said "all clinically appropriate and legally permissible". It is an example of an ambiguous sentence. I mean the sentence could be seen as giving a double test of "clinically appropriate" and "legally permissible". Crucially, it places that test in legal documents such as leases and, thereby, effectively gives a responsibility to the landlord, the tenant, and the boards of both the landlord and the tenant in terms of interpretation.

I apologise in advance if I am incorrect about the following but I have heard, during the course of this meeting even, that Mulvey has said that it could be removed. I know that the National Maternity Hospital has said that it should be removed or defined and, similarly, the Government has indicated that it is looking in that regard. I require a clear answer as to whether St. Vincent's Healthcare Group is open to the removal of the phrase, "clinically appropriate" even, as we have just heard, that clinical decisions are made on the ground to an extent by the Master due to the Hippocratic oath and all of that, so why are we putting the phrase into a document that requires board interpretation?