Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)

I have listened really intently to every word that has been said here today by all of the speakers. We are here today specifically because of scoliosis and the promises that were made. Families were threatened, ignored, and told to go away. They were told that they were the problem. They were reported to Tusla and it was all under the Tánaiste's watch.

Children and young adults were told to go home and to go to their GPs. They were told to go home while their ribs and bones crushed their lungs until they could not breathe. That is a fact and it is why we are here. Mikey Henry-Benson, who I have mentioned here many times, is 17 years old and has a neurological condition. He is a wheelchair user. He had severe scoliosis with a spinal curve of over 100 degrees in 2023. It was made clear to his mum what could happen to his vital organs if his scoliosis was not treated, yet Mikey was left to deteriorate. His spine and lungs were not monitored for another eight months. Meanwhile, his lungs were severely compromised. He is now on a bilevel position airway pressure, BiPAP, machine every night to remove the carbon dioxide from his lungs. His parents said their hearts were completely shattered when they were then told that he could not have his scoliosis surgery. His spinal curve is now 130 degrees. It was preventable if only Mikey had been looked after. This would not happen in any other country.

That is the issue for the Government. It would not happen in any other country. That was made clear yesterday and it is part of why these children could not get the help they needed from abroad either. For clinicians in other countries to see these children and what we allowed to happen to them would not be acceptable. They would see the scale of the problem.

The Tánaiste promised Mikey and others that they would wait no longer than four months for their surgery. Mikey's suffering continues. His parents continue to fight for his life. Why are we not insourcing the expertise from Great Ormond Street Hospital or Stanmore hospital? I hold the Tánaiste and his Government responsible for allowing harm to be inflicted on these children and young adults. That is why I cannot express confidence in him or his Government today. I just do not trust them. Mikey's mum said:

We asked Simon Harris for help last year but it never happened. He just wished our family all the best. What I want to say cannot be said live on TV. He has let us down and has let children down.

That is why I am opposing the motion of confidence in the Tánaiste. To hear everybody uttering confidence today is deplorable.

See this speech in context