Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

We are all conscious of the fact that when it emerged last year that the new hospital building would be in effect gifted to a private interest, there was an understandable public outcry. The Minister's commitment last August to State ownership went some way to alleviating public concerns about that. However, the language he used in his statement was and still is to some extent concerning. He referred to the building on a number of occasions but never to the site. He replied to a parliamentary question in recent times and he has been quite vague about this. We need to know what legal arrangements will be put in place in regard to the site. Does the Minister expect it to be a lien, a licence a lease or some other arrangement? Will financial commitments be made to secure the use of this site and what will they be? Will the Minister commit to return to the Dáil with details of the proposal prior to any legal agreement being signed?

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