Health Minister Wants To Re Explore Buying Land For National Maternity Hospital

The Health Minister says he wants to reexplore buying the land for the new National Maternity Hospital off the Sisters of Charity.

The Sisters have gifted the site to a private organisation, which will lease it to the State.

There are ongoing concerns the charity would have a Catholic influence on decisions in the hospital, despite the Government insisting it won’t.

Wicklow TD Stephen Donnelly says he wants to try and buy the land again.

A Dáil motion this week will call for the new National Maternity Hospital to be fully publicly owned on state land.

As talks continue to reach a solution to this ongoing saga opposition politicians have called on the government to set a hard end date.

Labour leader Alan Kelly believes this needs to be sorted within three months, or the government should issue a compulsory purchase order for the land for the new maternity hospital:

People Before Profit also support the idea of a CPO.

The Social Democrats will move a Dáil motion on the issue this week, with TD Roisin Shortall saying full public ownership is needed.

It's expected the government won't oppose the motion when it comes before the Dáil