Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle.

The Taoiseach's treatment of children with scoliosis and spina bifida who are waiting for surgery is disgraceful. These children wait in agony for operations that can save and change their lives and the longer they wait, the worse their condition gets. It is a race against the clock and against the child's condition becoming inoperable and the prospect of permanent paralysis. There are too many children in this awful situation and today I want to speak to the Taoiseach about one of them.

Nochtann cás Harvey Sherratt arís an chaoi scannalach a chaitear le páistí le scolóis agus spina bifida orthu atá ag fanacht na mblianta fada i gcomhair obráidí. Harvey Sherratt has scoliosis and spina bifida. He is eight years old. He was born in 2016, the same year the Taoiseach was appointed Minister for Health. In 2017, when Harvey was just one year old, his parents were told that his ribs were crushing his lungs. In that same year as he became Minister, the Taoiseach promised that no child with scoliosis would wait four months for his or her operation, but he broke that promise and children waited and waited. Harvey has waited and waited, and his condition has become life-threatening.

Two years ago, the curvature of the spine was 65°. Today it is 110°. It is twisting his rib cage against his heart and lungs, making it almost impossible for him to breathe. Between October and Christmas of last year, Harvey was rushed to hospital five times - twice by ambulance and on one occasion on Christmas Day. This child desperately needs his operation yet his parents recently found out that he was silently removed from the waiting list. Stephen, Harvey's dad, told me they have been pushed to breaking point and that it is utterly debilitating for them as a family to see Harvey treated this way. They feel powerless to help him. It has completely changed their outlook on life. His mother, Gillian, said the wait and lack of treatment is killing her child.

Gillian has sent the Taoiseach numerous emails pleading for assistance to no avail. Late last night on the eve of the return of the Dáil, however, she finally got her reply; an e-mail in which the Taoiseach makes no commitment to end the agony of their child. Of course, it was not the Taoiseach's only late night e-mail. Last May, he promised to meet the parents of children with scoliosis and spina bifida. He still has not met them and late last night, they too received an e-mail inviting them to meet him in October. This means they will have waited almost six months to see him.

Each day these children spend waiting is a day too long, never mind six months. I am sure Gillian and Stephen would have no problem telling the Taoiseach how much worse Harvey has got since he made that promise to meet last May. These children need their operations. All the Taoiseach has offered is review after review with no results or improvements. Parents are stonewalled again and again, and it is simply not good enough. These children wait and wait because of Government failures, and it is the Taoiseach's job to fix it. As Taoiseach, the buck stops with him. Today, I would like him to tell Harvey's parents and the parents of all of the other children when they will finally get their operations.

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