Matt Shanahan criticises Waterford hospital crisis and TU plans

Taoiseach, I previously highlighted that University Hospital Waterford has the lowest budget and lowest staff to bed ratio of all nine model four hospitals in the country. Parity of esteem is not extended to this hospital by Southwest Hospital Group. UHW has just passed the tragic milestone of 40 COVID patient deaths in one week. Additional emergency more capacity has had to be called upon. We now have one of the highest number of COVID inpatients in the country while continuing to have the lowest number of healthcare personnel available to them. Our crisis situation sees patients contracting COVID in hospital while our frontline staff are beyond burnout caring for them. Additionality promised to this hospital is a mirage, Taoiseach. Our cardiac care waiting list has doubled in the intervening period of a cat lab build saga that has long since descended into the realms of farce. We note discussion of a new hospital built in Cork despite the significant elective capacity existing there. Three years to deliver this new hospital, it seems, while the second largest hospital in the south of Ireland can continue to wallow in the mire of want and need with no relief beyond continuing baseless commitments and transparent platitudes. In the higher education sector, Waterford Institute of Technology saw its last new teaching building go through planning 24 years ago. Constrained of capital funding for over 20 years, WIT has defied all the odds to position itself as the leading IOT nationally year after year, winning yet again the National Institute of the Year for the third time. It is attended by two-thirds of all third-level students generated in the South East Sarai and has generated over 21 million of the 22 million research money brought into the region last year. Despite this exceptional record, we understand the technical university process appears now to have turned negative with outside political influence wishing to see WIT's leadership credentials dismantled. You Taoiseach, Your Government, the Line Minister have all taken the decision that, despite being the Institute of Excellence in the region, WIT should not be confirmed to retain the headquarters and governance of this new proposed merger structure from the outset. It now appears that proven leadership, performance and vision are to be hostage to political patronage, the recipe to deliver the educational equivalent of a half-bred camel rather than the thoroughbred racehorse promised. Your Government's position ignores any analysis of due diligence and property and countermands completely the aspirations of Ireland 2040. Considering locating the HQ and governance outside of Waterford will significantly destabilise third-level educational efforts in the South East region and our ability to continue to attract and retain high-end FDI. So my question to you yet again Taoiseach is where is equity and transparency from your Government in respect of our Waterford Hospital and our Institute retaining the academic lead and HQ of the proposed South East Technical University? Thank you. I first of all say to the Deputy that unprecedented resources have been allocated to the health services this year including Waterford and will continue. both in terms of the context of COVID-19 and in relation to non-COVID health services as well. Unprecedented resources going across the board including Waterford University Hospital and you know the Waterford Cat Lab project is happening, you know that in terms of the tendering processes and so on. And you know I think we will see that brought to fruition given the tendering processes very close to completion. And that is happening, I think you have been appraised of that in relation to the second Cat Lab and also the progression to seven day extended hours working on an incremental basis during 2021. Discussions on that are ongoing. We all know COVID-19 has impacted on non-COVID health services both in terms across the world in all hospitals because of the fact that electives and outpatients have had to be reduced. In terms of the Technological University of the South East, again I think your comments are unfair, I have to say. I think the most important point here is that there will be a Technological University for the South East. That is critical, something that people have campaigned for for years. I can recall as Minister for Education myself I was responsible for the most significant expansion of footprint in Waterford Institute of Technology in terms of acquiring new lands for the campus to develop and expand. And I can say to you Deputy that the Government is committed to expanding the footprint of Waterford Institute of Technology. Committed to doing that as part of the entire movement to university status. And I think it's anticipated that an application for Technological University designation under the Act of 2018 will be submitted by the consortium to Minister Harris for the decision no later than April the 28th 2020. And then the consortium is subject to obviously the peer review and the various processes. The consortium is anticipating TU establishment by the 1st of January 2022. Now that to me is something we should collectively go after for the benefit of Waterford and for the benefit of the South East in terms of higher education and participation. And I would equally say that no decision has been made on the headquarters for the new university. But I've had this discussion before. The most important aspect of this is the critical mass of the Technological Institute itself. And as I said the Government is committed to expanding the footprint in Waterford of the existing institute. And that will happen. That will happen. And all of the deputies have been consistent and in my view constructive in pursuing this objective. Thank you very much, Taoiseach. Which I think is an important objective that we should not know undermining in any way. Because that would be to the department of Waterford. Thank you very much, Deputy Shanahan. Thank you, Gerlach. Well Taoiseach, I don't understand why the issue of the TUHSE or the TUSHQ is that issue. WIT took in €21 million in research last year. I think Carlos was about 1.2. And that we're delaying a discussion on that has made this a very difficult and fraught process. And it shouldn't have to be that way. We should recognise where the competence is like. But it appears it's always different for Waterford whenever we do any political delivery. We've seen it with a CATLAB bill now that's going on over four years. Another 56 days yet to give the final tender approval. We'd have another hospital built in a different part of the country at the same time. In actual fact, the billed time for the proposed elective hospital in Cork for commissioning, billed commissioning, is less than three years. We're going to be in a four-year process to deliver a CATLAB. We have the same issues about funding to UHW. The same issues about additionality. Eight consultant posts announced that haven't even been approved by the consultant appointments commission yet. We go down and we look at SFI funding into the Higher Education Authority. Seventy million last year given to higher education. Nothing given to WIT. A programme that I brought to you for 2.8 million for an X-ray scanner approved in 2017. Still not approved. 193 million announced yesterday going out to technology HQs. Nothing again to WIT. Time is up, Deputy Chief. And Waterford won't accept it. I can promise you that. Thank you very much. Taoiseach to conclude. I just have to say to the Deputy that my understanding about that second hospital in Cork was announced about five or six years ago. It was in some reconfiguration report. It took some time for even a working committee to be established to consider it. So I can tell you one thing. The CAT lab will be built before any movement on that. But that's not the real point here is for years people have campaigned in respect of Waterford Institute of Technology evolving into a technological university. Across the country that has happened in Dublin in terms of the 3ITs getting together. It's happened in terms of CIT and Tralee Institute of Technology getting together. I would appeal to you that there is no necessity now to create division here given that we're on the cusp of WIT with Carlow becoming a technological university. That is for the benefit of everybody in the southeast but particularly also for the people of Waterford. It would be wrong now to create division around this. And for me as someone who has been involved in education for most of my life both politically and otherwise. It's what goes on in the campus is the key. That's the central issue here. And I know you've raised this issue with the headquarters which to me is an issue. But it's not the core of a university. Thank you Taoiseach. And Water Institute of Technology has really grown significantly in the last decade and more. Thank you very much. Time is up. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. The government is committed to expanding its footprint into the future. Its physical footprint. And that brings obvious realities with it in terms of more students, more staff. But critically, greater impact in terms of research and other areas. Thank you very much. The time is up. Thank you very much. Thank you very much.