Paul Murphy asks if Shared Island funds can save Daisy Hill Hospital
Paul Murphy raised concerns about cuts at Daisy Hill Hospital and asked whether the Shared Island Fund or other Irish government contributions could be used to support health services in the north. He argued that north-south cooperation in healthcare already exists and that funding decisions should be taken government to government.
Daisy Hill Hospital campaign
The speaker described a sustained local campaign to save Daisy Hill Hospital, saying there have been cut after cut with emergency services removed and a threat to lose a hundred beds. He cited a recent public meeting attended by hundreds, a protest of around a thousand people, and 12,000 submissions from the community. He also noted that People Before Profit is part of that campaign.
Shared Island Fund and funding scope
He asked explicitly whether the Shared Island Fund or other contributions could be directed to health services in situations like Daisy Hill. He said the Shared Island Fund has supported projects in the past and that any future contributions should be discussed government to government and with the five parties - not decided in the parliamentary chamber.
Cross-border healthcare cooperation
The speaker highlighted existing north-south healthcare cooperation, including children from the north going to Crumlin for heart surgery and patients from Donegal travelling for cancer and heart-attack treatment. He pointed out legal and jurisdictional differences, noting that abortion laws differ and that the Oireachtas and Stormont make separate decisions, with London acting when Stormont is not functioning.
A5 road commitment
He reiterated the government's commitment to making a financial contribution to the A5, calling it a very dangerous road and saying its upgrade would benefit communities in Tyrone, Derry, Donegal and Monaghan. He recalled being involved in ministerial meetings on the issue and urged that planning consent be granted so the state can contribute.
Government policy and funding capacity
The speaker argued the state's capacity to fund the Shared Island Unit and overseas aid rests on past economic policies - pro-free trade, pro-business and membership of the European Union. He warned that pursuing alternative policies advocated by some would, in his view, leave the state in a weaker financial position and unable to contribute to projects elsewhere.
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I want to quote you from a couple of months ago where you said, I have been asked many times can we make contributions to important infrastructure projects like for example the A5, are there things we can do to the shared Ireland fund and the answer is yes, I want to ask how far that goes in terms of contributions that the Irish government is willing to make to assist people in the north with the problems that they are facing, in particular I want to reference the health service where there is a very very important local hospital campaign in Urie to save Daisy Hill Hospital and thousands of people have been mobilised in different forms, public meeting a few days ago, hundreds of people at it, a thousand people at a protest a few weeks ago, 12,000 people signing submissions and basically there has been cut after cut to Daisy Hill Hospital taking emergency services out etc, now there is a threat to see a hundred beds lost and the future of the hospital itself is under threat The community is rallying, people before profit is a part of that campaign, but I want to ask whether this reference to the possibility for funding and so on, can that go towards health services in a situation like this? In terms of healthcare and north-south cooperation, we have a lot of cooperation when it comes to healthcare north-south, whether it is children from the north coming to Crumlin for heart surgery, whether it is patients from Donegal going to Alton and Galvin for cancer treatment for cancer treatment for cancer treatment of heart attacks, for example, the abortion laws in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland are different, we are in different jurisdictions, we decide what the laws are here in the Oireachtas, Stormont, when it is working, decides what the laws are in Northern Ireland, when they do not, decisions are made in London. On financial commitments, the government is committed to making a financial contribution to the building of the A5, it is a very dangerous road, I support the campaign to have it built, always have, it will not just be a benefit for people in Tyrone and Derry, it will also benefit people in Donegal and that should never be forgotten and Monaghan indeed. I was at meetings as Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport with then Minister Danny Kennedy and then Minister Sammy Wilson to agree on our financial contribution. Had I believed that ten years later it would not be through planning permission, I would have said it cannot be true, unfortunately it is true, but I really hope it gets planning consent now and of course the Irish Government will be happy to contribute to it and strongly support the campaign in Ferman and Torona and Derry. I have given the view earlier on in other debates that the Shared Island Fund is there to help and we have made contributions to different projects in the past and we are happy to have a conversation with the British Government and the Northern Ireland parties about how we can contribute to projects north of the border in the future. But that should not be done here in the chamber, that is a conversation that needs to happen government to government and with the five parties. But I would point out to the deputy that there are reasons why this state, this jurisdiction is in a position to fund something like the Shared Island Unit or provide over a billion euros in overseas development aid to other parts of the world to make our contribution to the European Union. And that is because of the economic policies that we have pursued down the years, pro-free trade, pro-business, part of the European Union. If we pursued different policies, the policies that people for profit would advocate, far from being in a position to fund projects in other jurisdictions, we would be asking for help from others. Although the fatigues would pay for the private fish would have been, I think you would be a much better deputy. Thank you fordock trafficking. Thank you and everybody. If you don't know all the ordering of people, it's a big deal. h!!!! Good afternoon. Thank you so much for your time and thanks again to審 만� for theैages,
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