Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I support this sound motion from Sinn Féin. Speaking on behalf of the Rural Independent Group, we demand the full retention by the Government of accident and emergency services at Our Lady's Hospital, Navan. I am grateful to Sinn Féin for again giving us an opportunity to debate the important issue of health.

It is annoying for the Opposition that the Minister is doing everything in the world except listening. Last week, he did nothing to endear himself to anyone, including his colleagues, when he did not keep to the practice. All members of the Government seem to be doing it now, with Ministers going around the country and believing it is okay to march into a county without informing their colleagues, with whom they are supposed to be working in conjunction. Even though the Minister is in government, he is supposed to be listening to and working with the people in opposition. If what is happening is nothing else, it is the height of bad manners. The Minister is not the only one doing it. He and other Ministers are going around and not informing representatives who are working on behalf of the people in their constituencies. All it would involve would be a simple email. In Jackie Healy-Rae's time when he was in the Dáil, God be good to him, a Minister would not go anywhere without notifying everyone about what he or she was doing because that was the proper thing to do.

Enough about that.

I want to highlight what is happening in County Kerry. Over the past ten days, I have been monitoring what has been happening in the accident and emergency department in University Hospital Kerry closely. Up until a couple of hours ago, I was speaking to people in management there to find out what is happening. They are at crisis and breaking point. They are doing everything they can to deal with the amount of people who are going in there. Their kindness, work ethic and ability to do their jobs is second to none but they need more management and resources and they are not getting it. Animals can get better and quicker treatment than people can now, and that is a fact.

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