There was a meeting of the Joint Committee on Health this morning. Members of the hospital group, including Sandra Broderick, and Mr. Mike Ahearne of the HSE are in the Gallery. I acknowledge the work they have been doing within the hospital sector in Limerick. They will be looking forward to the new hospital and the new wing. Is there a timeline for that?. Will it be a design-build project? Patient safety is a huge thing. One of the cases in UHL, which I have brought up in the House on many occasions, was that of Jessica Sheedy. That case has gone to the High Court. I would not like to see any other family going through something like that. Her case has been brought up on many occasions. The inquiry is ongoing. When are we getting a new hospital in Limerick? When are we getting the new extension in Limerick? When are we going to have a hospital of excellence that will be located at the side of a motorway and accessible not only for people in Limerick but also those in Tipperary, Clare and all the other areas. We need access, which we do not have to children's hospital at the moment. It is hard to get to. At least there was a small bit of forward thinking about where the new hospital will go in Limerick. I welcome that from the point of view of patient safety for the people in all the counties who will be going to the hospital. I want to make sure that happens. I do not want it delayed for years and find that we are talking about it again in five or ten years' time. I hope the lessons have been learnt from the last hospital and that it will be a design-build project that will be delivered on budget and on time. That is what a design-build does. It means that it is factored in by whatever contractor takes it on that they take the risk. The Government has control of the risk and the contractor takes the risk. Design-build means delivery on budget and on time. Otherwise, we do not have it and the contractor does not make money. I am okay with that, once it is built on time. That means we have patient safety. We can then have the people who have left these shores back home to Ireland. We can tell them they are going to be a part of a good news story for the Munster region because we will have a hospital in which they can excel and provide patient safety across this country. That is the goal here. I want to ensure that we have it. Is there a timeline for this project? When will the diggers be on site? When will the hospital be delivered?

Sentiment score: 0.09

I have already acknowledged the Minister in the context of the work that is being done in Limerick. We went through a very bad spell. The initial hospital of excellence was brought up in 2009. The people involved are no longer in the HSE, but they downsized Nenagh, Ennis and St. John's Hospital. It is great that the Taoiseach has acknowledged that the reverse needs to happen. That was one of the first things I said when I was elected six years ago. We need to ensure investment in health services. The Taoiseach has acknowledged that investment needs to go in there again. I acknowledge the work that has been done to date. It is refreshing to have the Minister in place. We have that now. We have good people in good places who want to get good things done, so let us get them done. Let us work together and get it done. I do not mind who does the job once it is done. At the moment, it is being done but I need to make sure that we have the timelines, that there is delivery and that we ensure patient safety. I acknowledge that the Taoiseach has said that Nenagh, Ennis and those areas need investment.

Sentiment score: 0.16

Good man.

Sentiment score: 0.44