Order of Business Contribution | National Maternity Hospital, Maternity Care During Covid, Hospitality Licencing and an Outdoor Summer & Pride Month

I call for an urgent debate on the future of the new national maternity hospital. I was one of the Oireachtas Members who attended the cross-party briefing with the Minister for Health last week at which it became apparent that proposals for the State to buy the site had been rejected. The situation has moved on over the weekend, however, and there have been further reports, including some contradictory ones. At this point, we need clarification on what exactly has been happening as regards the site's ownership.

I commend Dr. Peter Boylan, who for some years has been raising concerns about ethical governance and whether a full range of treatments and procedures for women will be carried out in the new maternity hospital if it is sited at the St. Vincent's hospital location. However, there are also concerns about the ownership of the site. It has become apparent that what is on offer is a 99-year lease for the State, or possibly a lease as long as 149 years. All of us might be conscious of the fact that it is still not State ownership. It now appears that the State will invest approximately €500 million - I have seen figures of up to €800 million - of public money in the building of the new hospital. Clearly, a new hospital is needed and it would be unfortunate to see delays, but that amount of public money should not be put into a site that will not be in public ownership.

This matter is not just about the ethical governance issues, serious though they are, but also the issue of public ownership of the land on which the hospital is to be built. Will the Leader ask the Minister for Health to attend the House for an urgent debate on it? We received some indications and the briefing was helpful, but we need to hear on the public record what exactly is happening. This is a serious issue.

We know the difficulties that many women are facing because of the current restrictions on partners accessing maternity services, as Senator Chambers eloquently described. We have all heard about dreadful experiences of women and their partners. There are major issues around maternity care and reproductive healthcare for women in this country. We need to have that broader debate, too.

Might I seek clarification on the issue of outdoor hospitality and the licensing rules? We are all glad to see outdoor hospitality reopened, but it is not satisfactory for those running premises or those seeking to enjoy hospitality on such premises to have a discretionary approach and to be unclear about what the licensing laws and Garda powers are.

I join others in wishing everyone a happy Pride. I commend Senator Buttimer on his remarks. I welcome the rainbow crossings that Dublin City Council has instituted. It is great to see the one outside PantiBar in particular. I condemn the dreadful homophobic graffiti that we saw against PantiBar and the homophobic actions in Waterford.