Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach and Senators for inviting me here today to speak to them on the new national maternity hospital. At the outset, the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, is currently in Dáil taking statements, questions, and answers, in relation to the vaccine roll-out. I am delighted to have the opportunity to discuss this critical and nationally important project in the Seanad. As many here will be aware, the practice of having stand-alone maternity hospitals, as is the case in four of our maternity services, does not reflect best international practice. Ensuring that mothers and babies have access to the full range of medical and support services, should the need arise, is of paramount importance. It is widely accepted that the best way to achieve this is to co-locate maternity services with adult acute services. That is why it is Government policy, as supported by the national maternity strategy, to co-locate the four remaining stand-alone maternity hospitals with adult acute hospitals.

It is important to recognise that our stand-alone maternity hospitals have served the people of this country very well, in some cases for hundreds of years. However, they are not the modern facilities a 21st century society needs. In particular, it is well-known that the buildings housing the National Maternity Hospital at Holles Street are no longer fit for purpose. Therefore, the new national maternity hospital is planned to be the first of the four remaining stand-alone maternity hospitals to be co-located. The new hospital is a vital piece of infrastructure, one that will help underpin the development of maternity services and the implementation of the national maternity strategy in the future.

The programme for Government recognises the importance of this project and clearly sets out our commitment to its development. It is worth reiterating that commitment today, which falls very much in line with our commitment to develop better health outcomes across the board for women in Ireland. In that regard, we are placing greater focus on women’s health, and we are investing more than ever before to ensure that the progress achieved in women’s health is consolidated and expanded for all women and girls into the future. The Government is aware, however, of concerns voiced in relation to the new hospital. Those concerns centre on the ownership and clinical independence of the new hospital. We understand those concerns, and we understand where they are coming from. We also recognise that the State does not have an automatic right to the uniform trust of the women of this country, given the way they have been failed in the past.However, I must point out that many of the concerns raised have been to the fore since the project was conceived and a significant amount of work was achieved through the Mulvey agreement, which was finalised following an extensive mediation process between the National Maternity Hospital and the St. Vincent’s Healthcare Group. The agreement was subsequently published and noted by the Government in 2017.

The Mulvey agreement provides for the establishment of a new company which will have clinical and operational, as well as financial and budgetary, independence in the provision of health services. Most importantly, the agreement ensures that a full range of services will be available at the new hospital without religious, ethnic or other distinction.

Following on from the Mulvey agreement, a draft legal framework has been developed to copper-fasten these arrangements and to address the State's core objectives: firstly, to ensure all clinically appropriate services that are legally permissible are provided for women who need them in the new national maternity hospital and to prevent any undue influence, religious or otherwise, in the operation of the new hospital; and secondly, to protect the State's investment for the public good.

Many Senators will also have heard the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, speaking on the issue of ownership of the hospital and ownership of the site on which the hospital is to be built. As stated previously, the preferred option for the Government would be to build the new hospital on land that is owned by the State.

As noted by the Government in 2017, the Minister for Health formally asked St. Vincent's Healthcare Group to consider an outright site transfer. However, this was not agreed and the current position is that the draft framework ensures that the hospital will be owned by the State and will be built on a site held on lease by the State for a period of 99 years, with a potential extension for a further 50 years. The HSE will, in turn, provide an operating licence to the new national maternity hospital and St. Vincent's Healthcare Group to facilitate the provision of health services in the building.

The Senators will no doubt have heard the Minister for Health state categorically that he will not be bringing any proposals to the Cabinet unless he is absolutely satisfied that the State's clear objectives are met through a cast-iron framework. In this context, the Minister for Health has stated that he wants to have further engagement with all stakeholders in the national maternity hospital project, as we move toward finalisation of the arrangements.

I would like the Seanad to know that we all share the same vision for maternity and women's healthcare services. We all want the very best for the women and babies of this country and we want to see them treated in the best possible environments. The best way to achieve this is by providing modern, safe, compassionate services that are delivered with dignity and respect. The planned move of the National Maternity Hospital to the Elm Park campus is a key part of achieving that aim and providing the state-of-the-art facilities that women not only need but deserve.

I look forward to hearing what the Senators have to say and I will conclude when everyone has spoken.