Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the four winners of last weekend's by-elections and wish them well for their time in the Oireachtas. In the same way one would sympathise with a person who did not do the lotto on the weekend his or her favourite six numbers were picked out, we ought to sympathise with the person who would have won the fifth by-election that would have taken place in Cork North Central had the incumbent resigned and the Taoiseach moved the writ. I suspect the unknown winner would probably have been Senator Colm Burke, who is present. I am sure his day will come. I congratulate him on his performance.

I wish to support the amendment to the Order of Business in respect of St. Joseph's in Shankill, the largest dementia-only care home in Ireland. As Senators are aware, it employs more than 100 people and offers 60 residential places. In supporting the amendment, I appeal to the Leader to convey to his Government colleague, the Minister for Health, Deputy Harris, the deep sense of alarm being created by the absence of a resolution or agreed way forward with the National Treatment Purchase Fund. New admissions are being discontinued and there is to be day care only.

As I understand it, the St. John of God hospital group has been covering the financial shortfall from its resources and has spent €7 million covering debt since 2012, mainly due to upgrading facilities and increasing staff numbers to meet HIQA regulatory requirements. It is clear that St. Joseph's and the St. John of God Order have been making every effort to keep this vital lifeline open. The value of the service provided by St. Joseph's and the respite it offers cannot be overestimated. It is fair to state we have known for some time that it has been facing a financial crisis which has been mainly attributed to the fact that the day care rate set by the HSE has not increased since 2006. It is very important that we focus on that issue in the Seanad and I ask the Leader to convey our concern to the Minister.

On the somewhat related issue of Cuisle, I have not been playing politics. I have no interest in giving an advantage to one political party over another. However, I must state I was deeply disappointed by the response of the Minister of State in the House last week because, as Senator Leyden pointed out, he washed his hands of the issue like Pontius Pilate. I used that phrase myself. The Minister of State stated Cuisle does great work but it was up to others to make the decision. That is not what being in power is about. Rather, it is about deciding the matter should be sorted out, recognising that one cannot intervene directly and others must make the decision but ensuring one's preference is conveyed to them. That ministerial clout can make all the difference. That has not been done in the case of Cuisle, which is very regrettable.