Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Leader will be aware that I have spent the past five years concerned about the search and rescue service that operates in this country. The award of a contract recently to Bristow was to bring with it all sorts of additional services. We have heard colleagues this morning talking about the lack of ambulance services. The legal battle between CHC and Bristow has been resolved, but part of that resolution is absolutely unbelievable. We awarded a contract to Bristow for €800 million. They were supposed to be live in Sligo on 14 February last. This has been put back to 15 December next. That is ten months further on before they will be able to take over.

The Leader will be concerned about this because it is smack bang on his doorstep. The service from Shannon cannot provide a helicopter emergency medical service. The personnel involved cannot take a stretcher on board the aircraft. If you have a heart attack and need to be airlifted from one hospital to another, you are going to have to sit in the back of the aircraft. If you suffer a head injury in Donegal and need to be brought to Beaumont Hospital, you will have to sit. There is no lying down on stretchers. If you have a stroke and you have to be brought to Beaumont Hospital from a hospital in the west, you will have to sit. There is no facility to use a stretcher on the helicopter.

What are we at? The Secretary General of the Department five times refused to come before a joint Oireachtas committee. In the end, that individual stated that only the Minister is answerable to the committee. This is one unholy mess, and we need a public inquiry as to how we got here. We have a service that is not fit for purpose and we are paying €800 million for it. I would like to know who is paying for CHC to run the service until December of next year.