Top two invited to debate

Top two invited to debate

9 March 2016

HOSPITAL campaigners are organising a major debate on health in Downpatrick ahead of the forthcoming Assembly election.

First and Deputy First Ministers Arlene Foster and Martin McGuinness are being invited to next month’s Question Time event along with the health spokespersons from the main political parties and trade union representatives.

The April 12 event is being held at the St. Patrick Centre and invitations are also being issued to hospital campaign groups in other parts of the Province.

The Down Community Health Committee has met with a number of political parties over recent weeks including the TUV, DUP and Alliance to discuss the future of the Downe Hospital which has lost its 24-hour emergency department and dedicated coronary care unit.

Members of the Ulster Unionist Party, SDLP and Sinn Fein are due to meet with campaigners in the near future and to tour the hospital, but the health group wants to widen the net to focus the spotlight on health ahead of the May election.

Agreement to organise a major health debate was rubber stamped at the campaign group’s meeting in Downpatrick on Monday evening with work now underway to issue invitations to participants.

In the run-up to the last Westminster election, local campaigners launched their own health manifesto for the various South Down candidates to endorse and with the Assembly election now just weeks away, the health committee is keen to ensure health remains at the forefront of the political agenda.

The chairman of the health committee, Mr Eamonn McGrady, believes it is time for all those interested in health to come together. He said health is “too big an issue and too important” to be allowed to become a political football.

“Now is the time for a real debate on health and why rural communities in particular are being so severely disadvantaged and why Northern Ireland has a policy and continues to go down the route of centralisation, when the opposite is in fact what is happening in England,” he said.

“Why do we have to be in this time lag and what is the agenda that leads to this? I think it would be good to do something and have major debate on health and invite all the political parties.”

“This is about having a debate about health and there needs to be one. While there are many issues, there is one big issue for us which is the Downe Hospital.”

Mr McGrady said parties will be asked to send their respective health spokespersons to the April event. If they fail to do so the chair reserved for them on the stage will remain empty.

Committee member Aidan Harris backed the health debate suggestion and called for more support for the Downe Hospital at Assembly level.

“Just over a year ago there were 20,000 people on the streets of Downpatrick in support of the Downe Hospital,” he said.

“It is my view that had such a mass demonstration of support for a local hospital been staged in any other part of the country, more of the issue would have been made on the floor of the Assembly. The health debate we are planning is very important and hopefully all the main parties will be represented.” 

The April 12 at the St. Patrick Centre starts at 7.30pm and there will be an independent chairman. Entry will be via tickets only with details about how these can be obtained to be confirmed shortly.