Ahern: Emergency law not camouflage

TAOISEACH Bertie Ahern yesterday denied that emergency health legislation being rushed through the Dáil this week was “political camouflage” to help railroad the Government’s co-location plans through the Dáil.

Last week, the Government revealed there may be constitutional problems with a Health Act dating from 1961 that sets up corporate bodies. The legal status of some 19 bodies, including the Blood Transfusion Service Board and the boards of St James’s and Beaumont Hospitals would be affected.

But yesterday, Labour leader Eamon Gilmore challenged the Taoiseach on the legislation, asking why it had taken six weeks to announce the tabling of emergency legislation.

He also questioned the inclusion of a provision in the bill to facilitate the building of private clinics on the grounds of both Beaumont and St James’s Hospitals as part of the Government’s contentious co-location plan to free up 1,000 public beds.

“In order to save their blushes... the Government has devised this concoction of emergency legislation into which it has slipped a provision concerning St James’s and Beaumont Hospitals,” he claimed.

Mr Ahern rejected this, saying that amending legislation was required to confirm the status of the 19 bodies. He accepted that a similar local government act had put a question mark over bodies set up by the Department of Environment.

Mr Ahern said emergency legislation was not being drafted for this but the legislation was being drafted “quickly”.

Later, during Order of Business Mr Gilmore, Fine Gael’s Enda Kenny and Caoimhghín O Caoláin of Sinn Féin opposed what they said was a bill being rushed through the Dáil. All claimed it was designed to facilitate co-location.

Mr Gilmore said of the 691 debates on legislation guillotined since 1919, 307 had been guillotined during Mr Ahern’s period as Taoiseach.