As the proposed next Taoiseach of this country, I want the Tánaiste to sort out the mess in University Hospital Limerick, UHL. He appointed the management of this hospital and he has a duty of care to the people of Limerick and the mid-west region to get it sorted. Many people who attend UHL do not have the option of private healthcare and are unable to commute to other counties for healthcare. When contacting our offices, constituents have said they would rather die than go to this hospital. That is how serious it is.

People of counties Limerick, Tipperary, Clare and north Kerry are at risk of serious injury due to the lack of proper care at UHL. Staff are leaving in their droves. According to Trolley Watch figures, UHL consistently has the highest number of patients on trolleys. Over five days in November, the number of people on trolleys were 70, 84, 70, 87 and 88, all of whom were vulnerable. Some 98 new beds were opened in December 2020 so that there would be no more people left waiting on trolleys. Where is the accountability?

Seemingly, when the expert from the Department of Health was put in place recently, there was no one on trolleys, which is amazing. I ask the management team to step down immediately and that a proper investigation be conducted, with prosecutions if needed. I understand 70 doctors made a protected disclosure to the HSE explaining the conditions in UHL. The Tánaiste is a doctor. He trained in healthcare and qualified as a doctor. I am pleading with him, as I have pleaded with other Ministers, to help us in UHL.

Jessica Sheedy, a young girl, died on 11 May 2018. I have permission to mention her name. The investigation is still ongoing, and is going around in circles, but we can now see that paperwork has been tampered with. I refer to the case of Savita Halappanavar in Galway. There were investigations into paperwork being changed in this case. I recently watched a documentary on a true case in America, I think, where a person was going around killing people in hospitals. They were caught and sentenced, as they should be.

We now have a serious problem in UHL. I said on the first day I came into the Dáil that the management is wrong. For the safety of patients and the healthcare staff in the hospital, I am pleading with the Government to investigate this hospital and get the management to step down. The information is there and it is coming from all parties in this House. Different Deputies have mentioned it on more than one occasion. It has even been mentioned in the Seanad. We need the Government's help. Can it step up and help us, please?

I acknowledge the situation in UHL is grave. The hospital suffers from a high level of overcrowding almost all the time.

There has been a lot of investment in the hospital in recent years. The budget has never been greater. Notwithstanding the difficulties in recruiting and retaining staff, there have never been more staff. I include medical and clinical staff in that. Extra beds have been provided and there is a whole new emergency department, which the Deputy will be aware of. I guarantee that these issues and concerns regarding the hospital are raised with me by Government Deputies, particularly those from Clare, Limerick and north Tipperary, all of the time.

On the management of the hospital, the Deputy may not be aware, but I am happy to clarify for the Dáil that hospital managers are not appointed by Government nor do we have the authority to dismiss them. They are employees hired in the normal way in which public sector employees are hired and they have basic rights under law to have their good names protected and to have any complaints against them heard fairly, following a particular process. I am a little uncomfortable to hear any staff being criticised in the House, where we are protected by privilege. We need to be careful about that but I will leave the matter there. I will certainly let the Minister for Health know that Deputy O'Donoghue has raised these matters.

I see that the Tánaiste has a minute and half left to speak. He could not even complete the three or four minutes he was allocated. Some €23 billion has been allocated for health. How much has been spent on cover-ups and non-disclosure agreements? There are 70 health professionals and doctors who have come to the Government but who have now been silenced. How many people are out sick because of the issues in UHL? Will the Tánaiste look at the number of staff who are leaving the hospital? I do not want to name and blame anyone. I am here for the protection of the people of Limerick and the surrounding areas who use this hospital. For years, I have asked the Government to help. There is a serious problem with management. If it was any other business, they would be gone. It was noted in the newspapers that the Tánaiste asked the CEO to take up that position. Will he now investigate this matter? I ask him to help the people of Limerick and the surrounding areas, stop the cover-ups, spend the money on healthcare and check out the amount of money being spent on legal services and the silencing of staff. For the betterment of the people of this country, we need them to know they can go to this hospital. I am from Limerick. I want UHL to be the best hospital in the country and I am very disappointed that it is not. People from Limerick and the surrounding areas are asking for our help. I ask the Tánaiste to please investigate this matter for me.

Deputy O'Donoghue has made a number of allegations with regard to cover-ups and other things. I do not know if those allegations are true and I do not have any powers to investigate them. However, if the Deputy has evidence to back them up, I would encourage-----

It is coming shortly and it will all be here. I have asked for help for years and the Government stopped it.

It is impossible for me to comment on allegations of cover-ups without knowing the specifics or what evidence the Deputy has. If he has evidence to support his claims, I ask him to make it available to the relevant authorities. To clarify, in case it was not clear from my original response, I do not have and have never had any role in the appointment of hospital managers.

I understand the seriousness of the issue but Deputy O'Donoghue has said quite categorically that documents were tampered with. I presume he means to say "allegedly". I ask the Deputy to be careful.

We will say "allegedly" for the moment but, if the Tánaiste will agree to meet with me personally, I may be able to update him further.

That is okay. It was just important to say that.