Mary Lou McDonald: National Maternity Hospital deal 'is about private interests trumping public good'

Retention of ownership of the land by the healthcare group is "so it can use the value of it as leverage for future financial transactions", said the Sinn Féin leader.

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said the crux of this issue is that the land has not been gifted. Picture: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

The complex ownership arrangement for the proposed National Maternity Hospital is to allow the private owners of the land to leverage the value of the building for future transactions, the Dáil has heard.

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald challenged Taoiseach Micheál Martin on comments he made to the effect that such questions about the ownership amount to a "red herring".

“It's about the St Vincents Healthcare Group retaining control of the land so it can use the value of it as leverage for future financial transactions,” she said. 

So it's about private interests of this group, trumping the public good, and a Government that is willing to let this happen."

Mr Martin rejected such comments as “nonsense” and urged Ms McDonald to listen to the calls of the midwives at the hospital who want the hospital built as quickly as possible.

The Taoiseach pointed to a column in the Irish Examiner written by Fergus Finlay, who wrote in favour of the proposed deal, calling for the hospital to be built, speaking as a director of the Health Service Executive.

Mr Martin said that the deal agreed with St Vincent’s Hospital Group means the land has been “gifted”, essentially, for 300 years for €10 a year.

“A 300-year-lease at €10 a year is ownership by any other name — that is a fact,” Mr Martin said during heated exchanges.

You are playing politics with every issue coming before the House. On every issue, you can not have it both ways all of the time.” 

Ms McDonald said the crux of this issue is that the land has not been gifted.

She said the current hospital in Holles Street is not fit for purpose because of underinvestment by this Government, and government after government.

Labour leader Ivana Bacik said the site must be in public ownership and asked why in 2017 was a decision made to proceed with this "Byzantine" legal arrangement that throws into doubt any issues around a lingering ethos.

“Why was the decision made then to proceed rather than simply to insist on the land being transferred into public ownership?” she said.

Mr Martin said he did not understand the logic of Ms Bacik’s questions — saying that if people don't want to cede the ownership they don't want to cede ownership.

“I don't see the logic by the way of a compulsory purchase order costing a significant amount of taxpayers' money is better value than a 300-year-lease at €10 a year,” he said.

He said the Church are not involved in this — good, bad, or indifferent.

Agenda

Ms Bacik said there is clearly an agenda lying behind the decision not to gift the land to the State or not to sell it at a reduced rate.

“That's not an agenda of the Government, it's not an agenda of the HSE," she said. 

But there is an agenda and there is a rationale presumably behind the decision by the current owners of the land, not to transfer it to the State for either a nominal sum or indeed to gift it to the State.” 

Ms Bacik said she is asking questions because of a lack of clear answers from Government.

Solidarity-People Before Profit TD Bríd Smith hit out at St Vincent’s Group and the Sisters of Charity who she said was a body that were involved in redress for what happened to the women in this country.

“There's a legacy, there's a history, and there's a bad taste in our mouths,” she said to Mr Martin.

And don't tell us that we're playing politics with 100 years of the attacks against women and their health.

“And if you think there's no reason why we shouldn't trust you, look around you, look at your Cabinet, and members of your ministers who voted and campaigned against the repeal referendum who tried to hold back progress for women in this country.”