University Hospital Galway was one of the most overcrowded hospitals in the country in 2023 and the situation is getting worse. On several occasions, including in this House, I have suggested that the establishment of a minor injuries unit in Merlin Park Hospital grounds would be an immediate and cost-effective method of relieving the overcrowding and stress at the emergency department in University Hospital Galway. A minor injuries unit is operating at Roscommon and it takes an average of 55 minutes to be seen, treated and discharged. There are 14 such minor injuries units across the country but none in Galway. Merlin Park is the ideal location for such a unit in Galway city, having a lot of space for parking and being located away from the university hospital, which is chronically overcrowded. The provision of a minor injuries unit in Galway would mean that people with non-urgent minor injuries are treated and discharged quickly and it would help to free up the emergency department for more urgent and serious cases. Will the Tánaiste give a commitment today to support the proposal for a minor injuries unit for Galway that would significantly improve healthcare for the people of Galway city and county and surrounding areas?

I have been a long-standing advocate for and supporter of minor injuries units. I do not know the background as to why we do not have a minor injuries unit in Galway. Is it to do with the configuration of Merlin Park and other hospital projects getting ahead of it?

The Government will not give us one.

It is not that we will not give one. Have the plans come forward? I will certainly talk to the Minister for Health because they work and they take pressure off the emergency departments.