Tanaiste and Minister for Health Mary Harney has admitted to Deputy Joan Burton to holding a series of private and exclusive meetings with consultants and developers at Connolly Memorial Hospital, Blanchardstown. T
hese meetings were held to discuss and lay ground plans for a private hospital on the grounds of publicly owned land at the hospital.
This revelation comes hot on the heels of the Minister’s recent admission to Joan Burton T.D. that Connolly Hospital in Blanchardstown has received no commitment of funding for its Phase 2 development.
Deputy Burton commented:
“When the new A&E unit opened at last after many years of delay, hopes were high in Dublin 15 that this would be followed by the construction of Phase 2.
However, it seems that the only planning that the Minister has been doing for Connolly Hospital has been private selective meetings with consultants and developers, whose only interest is the major tax breaks that private hospital development now offers.
The Minister is proposing to allow private investors to take over public land at Blanchardstown, using the carrot of tax shelters to attract them. Private hospitals will make a small number of investors very rich indeed. They will be given public land to build on, they will be given guarantees of custom from the National Treatment Purchase Fund, and their investments can be used to reduce or eliminate their tax bills.
These private and selective meetings for consultants and developers smack of a sweet-heart deal between the Minister and Ireland’s super rich that puts profit before people.”
Read below relevant PQ
To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the discussions, advice or information she has had in relation to the establishment of a private hospital in the grounds of the Connolly Memorial Hospital, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15; the person with whom she has had these discussions; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
Joan Burton T.D.
Over the last year, I have had discussions with numerous people on a great variety of different proposals to develop private hospitals on public hospital grounds throughout the country.
In relation to Connolly Memorial Hospital, Blanchardstown, I have accepted invitations to attend two meetings hosted by Dr Conor Burke, Consultant Respiratory Physician at Connolly Memorial Hospital.
One was attended by many of the consultants at the hospital, a representative of the hospital’s management and its director of nursing, the secretary general of my Department, an official from the Department of Finance and my Special Adviser. Among the many topics discussed were the potential for the development of step down beds and a private hospital.
The other was attended by Mr Bernard MacNamara, Mr Noel Corcoran and my Special Adviser, Mr Oliver O’Connor. I listened to a presentation of ideas about step down facilities and a private hospital.
I recently made a policy direction to the Board of the Health Service Executive in relation to private hospital developments that would free up new public beds. It is for the HSE to implement this policy.