I want to raise the issue of the possibility of an air ambulance for the mid-west. There was some good news for the north west the other day, as it now has an air ambulance based out of Sligo. There is real need to have one in the mid-west. Recently I was part of a delegation of TDs from the region who met the National Ambulance Service. It costs it at around €4 million per annum to have an operational service. It is really needed. For many people in the western and northern extremities of County Clare there is no golden hour. They are simply too far away from University Hospital Limerick. I cannot hide my personal disappointment that the new hospital site for UHL was chosen in Raheen in Limerick and not in Clare. We very much need something that deals with the peripheral parts of our county. If the north west has it, given that the annual budget for healthcare in this country is €29 billion surely €4 million could be facilitated to run an operational air ambulance service in the mid-west, specifically out of Shannon Airport in County Clare.

Sentiment score: 0.02