Tom Neville (Limerick County, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I reiterate that we need this project to proceed as quickly as possible. From what I hear, dates are being shifted out all the time. The Minister of State is saying today that it will commence in 2021. We need to get this moving faster. I ask that we find a way to fast-track this process. I ask that the person who is appealing the decision to grant planning permission for the project, An Bord Pleanála and the Minister sit down, iron out their differences and come up with a solution so that we can move this forward. People are lying on trolleys under bright lights and having their privacy compromised. I have had phone calls this weekend in respect of some specific cases. Some people have been on trolleys for three or four days. We have been dealing with this for a considerable period.

On diagnostics, I also suggest that we move beyond the nine to five, Monday to Friday model. This has happened in the private sector where people move to weekend shifts and are remunerated and paid bonuses and shift allowances accordingly. We need to start thinking differently in this regard. It is getting too serious.

I pay tribute to the staff in University Hospital Limerick who are working under extreme pressure. A total of 67,800 people attended the hospital's accident and emergency department last year. I understand the new facility will deal with the most acute cases and those who have reached the end of the admissions process for whom staff are trying to get beds. I commend the staff and management because a large number of people have passed through the hospital. It is essential that we get the project through as soon as possible.

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