Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for her comments on the elective hospital. The national cancer centre is being looked at. I have had meetings on it in the past few weeks. It is an important project. As the Deputy rightly says, it is one of several significant investments in healthcare in Galway. We had agreement yesterday on the elective hospital. A proposal, which I support, is in for a seven-storey emergency and women and infants' block, which is actually the size of a small hospital. It is a huge piece. I have been discussing with the hospital team the need to upgrade the laboratories. The hospital also has a proposal in for additional bed blocks.

An ambitious proposal is being developed for a cancer care centre in Galway. The project would cost significantly in excess of €100 million so we will go through the public spending code and the HSE capital projects manual and approvals protocol. The strategic assessment report, which is one of the important stages, is being reviewed internally in the HSE. It is intended that this report will then be submitted to the national capital and property steering committee as soon as possible. If that is approved, it will be sent to me for consideration.

The Government is committed to ensuring the continued improvement of cancer services at University Hospital Galway and the region. As the Deputy will be aware, an important new service, a radiation oncology facility, will come on line in the coming months. This is a state-of-the-art facility with several linear accelerators and will be cost €56 million. It is only one thing that is needed but it will be an important additional service for patients in the region.

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