Brian Hayes (Fine Gael)

We accept today's Order of Business as proposed by the Leader.

Will the Leader ask her colleague, the Minister for Health and Children, to come to the House and set out in clear, unambiguous terms what is the response of the Department of Health and Children to the incidence of the MRSA bug in our hospitals? I make this request in the context of yesterday's statement by a senior microbiologist who was giving evidence at an inquest in Dublin that "MRSA is endemic in every Irish hospital". There is genuine public concern on this matter and people are frightened to go to hospitals, many of which leave much to be desired in terms of hygiene. Crowds of people pass through the facilities every day.

The Government can surely put in place a screening programme which would identify and monitor the particular virulent strain of MRSA of which some people are carriers, irrespective of the community strain to which this microbiologist referred yesterday. This is a serious issue of public concern. The Minister for Health and Children has raised the matter and has put a programme in place. Clearly, however, we are not winning the war on infection. In the context of the microbiologist's remarks, especially his contention that this particular strain of MRSA is spilling out into nursing homes, I call for a debate as soon as possible to hear what progress, if any, is being made by the Government in tackling this problem.