Children's health Bill
Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked when the children's health Bill would come before the House and questioned the proposed name for the national children's hospital. The Minister said the Bill would be brought forward this session and that he would not proceed with the current name, promising a process to decide it.
I wish to ask about legislation relating to a capital project that has been announced by the Government every six months or so, most recently in Project Ireland 2040. When will the children's health Bill appear before the House? Pre-legislative scrutiny was completed last October. The Bill, which is meant to set up the new children's hospital, is needed, given that building works are well under way and planning for the amalgamation of the three paediatric hospitals are continuing apace. Is it intended to continue with the title that was announced and was ridiculed in the media?
Comment on this
The Deputy must be mistaking us with our predecessors. We did not just announce the national children's hospital. Rather, we are building it in the Deputy's own constituency. I welcome that fact.
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No. The predecessor before the Taoiseach. Those ones.
Comment on this
As to the two serious issues that Deputy Ó Snodaigh raised regarding the legislation, it will be before the House this session. It is important legislation and I look forward to getting it under way. I have decided not to proceed with the hospital's name. I do not want the name to cause confusion or controversy in what is a major infrastructural project for our citizens. I will outline a suggested process for deciding the name when I table the legislation. For the moment, "National Children's Hospital Ireland" seems apt to me.