asked the Minister for Health if, having regard to the urgent need of more modern hospital accommodation, particularly if the proposals of the FitzGerald Report are to be implemented in the foreseeable future, he will now indicate that substantially increased investment in new hospitals will be made over the next five years; and if he will particularly ensure that the capital allocated for such purposes keeps pace with declining money values and increasing building costs.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Investment in New Hospitals.
32.
The need for modern hospital accommodation and facilities is one of the major issues arising from the Report of the Consultative Council on the General Hospital Services which are at present under active consideration in my Department, in consultation with the various other organisations and interests involved. It is not possible at this stage to indicate precisely the extent to which substantial investment in new hospitals will occur over the next five years, but it seems possible that, within that period, a number of major new hospital projects will have commenced.
As regards the capital moneys required for such investment, the Deputy is no doubt aware that expenditure on hospitals, in common with other capital works financed from public moneys, is subject to the overall control of public capital expenditure at Government level which in recent years it has been necessary to introduce. I am confident that adequate moneys will be made available at the appropriate time to meet approved capital expenditure on any new hospitals on which work commences during the next five years— including expenditure arising from increased building costs.
Has the Minister considered that the figure in the Third Programme for the next five years for hospital building is about £40 million less than is necessary if the proposals in the FitzGerald Report are to be implemented and, having regard to this necessary tremendous expenditure to provide us with the minimum hospital accommodation and facilities, what special steps will be taken to provide the capital?
We are actively planning two regional hospitals and two general hospitals in Dublin in relation to proposals in the report of the consultative council and we reckon that, in spite of the stringency in the provision of capital and the many claims upon it, we should be able to do something about the constructing of certain hospitals in Dublin by the end, shall we say, of 1972 or 1973 and then, of course, as the Deputy knows, there are proposals for the improvement of certain hospitals in the country. I might add also that there is not any country that I know of, even countries much wealthier than we are, where it is not found difficult to provide capital for all health and hospital purposes.
I am trying to help the Minister with his colleague the Minister for Finance.