Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. I appreciate that she was sent in here to read a script on behalf of the Minister for Health. It is very troubling that four months after the Minister said he was setting up a consultation process, he now seems to have back-tracked. The reply the Minister of State read on his behalf suggests he is merely "giving consideration to a process for wider consultation". The problem is that the HSE and the Minister have caused almost three years of uncertainty. In 2016, the regional management announced the possibility of scaling back the accident and emergency department. From day one, that undermined the future of services at Portlaoise hospital. During 2016 and 2017, the draft report went up and down between the Minister's office, the Department and the HSE before it landed on the Minister's desk in September 2017. The uncertainty must be brought to an end. There is nothing more damaging to a hospital than uncertainty. The Minister, Deputy Harris, is the only person who can eliminate the uncertainty that has put a cloud over the future of Portlaoise hospital for two and a half years now.

It seems that four months after the Minister met us, he is now considering a further process of consultation. We do not want a consultation process at this point in time. We want the Minister and his Cabinet colleagues to take a definitive decision to reject the report that is on the Minister's desk. I do not want to spend another year discussing a report that essentially wants to close most services in the hospital, including the accident and emergency, maternity and paediatric units. We do not want further consultation on that. As the Minister of State has outlined, people were consulted before the report was given to them. The consultation period in relation to the drafting of the report should be over. We want the Minister to decide to reject the report in favour of increases in investment, funding and staffing to ensure the people who rely on Portlaoise hospital enjoy safe and high quality services. This needs to happen as quickly as possible. There should be no further talking. This report needs to be rejected for once and for all so that the cloud of uncertainty that lies over the hospital in Portlaoise can be lifted by the Minister.

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