Eric Byrne (Dublin South Central, Labour)

It is a bit rich to be required to say in two minutes what politicians have been speaking about for 16 years. I want to recall a debate in which I was intimately involved as a member of the board of Crumlin Children's Hospital. I recall vividly a debate about the national tertiary paediatric hospital. I am acutely aware that the board threw its weight behind the concept of moving to a single site. The refusal by An Bord Pleanála to grant permission for the proposed new hospital will have horrendous ramifications. My heart goes out to the parents and children who have been desperately waiting for a national paediatric hospital for many years. I appeal to the Minister not to panic in the face of what has happened. If we rush into a new decision to build a hospital on a lesser scale, we could end up with an incorrect development.

I remember the debate in Crumlin when we bought into the McKinsey report. The nine key criteria points were of crucial importance. I am acutely aware that the consultants and specialists in Crumlin - given that Crumlin is essentially this country's national tertiary paediatric hospital, they are the foremost specialists in the country - threw their bodies and souls behind the complex negotiations and took part in the internal planning processes that resulted in the scale of the hospital that eventually emerged. I ask the Minister to cautiously recognise that in the past, the input of the Crumlin authorities has been instrumental in facilitating this development. If my senses are right, I believe they would have severe reservations about any downscaling of the project to which they contributed in recent years.

I am calling on the Minister to carefully consider co-locating an acute general hospital, as set out in the initial criteria, with a paediatric hospital and the Coombe hospital. A potential site for such a hospital exists as a result of the failure to develop the Bailey Gibson site, the Player Wills site and the St. Teresa's Gardens area. It is exciting that we could have the tri-location of an acute adult hospital, a paediatric hospital and a maternity hospital at this site. I appeal to the Minister to consider that. Perhaps he will engage with the boards of management of St. James's Hospital and Crumlin Children's Hospital, as well as the Dublin City Council planners, on the possibility of redeveloping the Coombe site.

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