asked the Minister for Health if he has received any complaints to the effect that the establishment of retail shops for the sale of confectionery and tobacco at Grangegorman Mental Hospital and at St. Laurence's Hospital is having an adverse effect on the traders in the vicinity of the hospitals; and if he will request the authorities of these hospitals to have sales to the general public discontinued.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Retail Shops in Hospitals.
I have received a complaint from a trade organisation relating to the sale of goods of this nature in these and other hospitals. The authorising of such sales at Grangegorman Hospital is basically a matter for the Grangegorman Mental Hospital Board and I would be concerned only if the due and proper administration of the hospital were being affected. I understand that the general public (apart from those visiting patients) have not access to the shop in this hospital. As regards St. Laurence's Hospital, which is not a local authority hospital, it would be outside the scope of my functions to make a request on the lines referred to in the question.