Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank all my colleagues, and indeed, the Ministers, for their support of the motion. I welcome that; it is certainly positive. The urgent nature of it is lacking, however.

In its report, HIQA said the implementation of the recommendations was an imperative. I see no time span and no sense of urgency. Right up until February 20, or shortly before that, the driving body, that is, the national women and infants health programme, could not report precisely to HIQA what the report was. We need the implementation of a costed plan within the time span allowed. That is not happening.

The question has to be asked here today. Why did it take the motion? Why are those responsible still working on it? Why have the Ministers - especially the senior Minister - not asked the HSE where in God's name is the implementation plan for the HIQA report, which dates from back in February 2020?

I am not in any way reassured by the comments of the Minister or the Minister of State today on the National Maternity Hospital, unfortunately, in respect of the way forward. I want a firm commitment to public ownership of the National Maternity Hospital on public land. That public land has to be either acquired by compulsory purchase or bought or situated on a different site. We have to stop fiddling around with a mechanism that allows for Canon Law or religious law or a smokescreen. I support the call. I gather it will come with a full motion in due course and I call on the Minister to support it.

I am a stickler for time. According to the clock I have three minutes remaining but there has been such a commotion about time that I am going to concede. Perhaps we can improve our time management.

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