asked the Minister for Health if he will furnish details of the projects being financed this year by way of the £13½ million allocated last January for hospital construction projects; and the number of jobs generated by this expenditure.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Job Creation Programme.
34.
My Department's capital allocation for hospital projects for 1977 is £16 million—£13.5 million as Exchequer grant-in-aid and £2.5 million from Local Loans Fund and Hospital Sweepstake Funds.
Of this sum £10.8 million was allocated to meet the cost of schemes completed in 1976 or earlier, schemes in progress since 1976, minor works and contingencies. The balance, £5.2 million was provided for major new projects.
The total number of jobs generated by this capital programme was about 1,250. This includes about 350 created this year under job-creation programmes.
With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to circulate with the Official Report details of the projects involved other than items of a minor nature.
Following are the particulars:—
EASTERN HEALTH BOARD
General:
St. James's Hospital—Pathology Laboratory.
Beaumont General Hospital.
National Medical Rehabilitation Centre— Limb fitting workshop.
Our Lady's Hospital, Crumlin—Intensive Care Unit.
Rotunda Hospital—Boiler house services.
St. James's and Federated Hospitals— Hospital improvement works.
St. Laurence—Improvement of theatre and ward facilities.
Jervis Street Hospital—Casualty and Detoxification units.
Linden Convalescent Home—Extension.
St. Vincent's Elm Park—Psychiatric and Geriatric Unit.
Meath Hospital—Staff dining facilities.
Dr. Steevens's Hospital—New Accident Unit.
St. Luke's Hospital—Linear Accelerator Unit.
Baltinglass District Hospital—30 bed unit for old people.
Provision of Ambulance Control Centre at St. James's Hospital.
Psychiatric:
Central Mental Hospital, Dundrum— Special Unit for 15-21 year olds.
|
St. Ita's Portrane— |
Fire precautions,72-bed unit,Female Chronic Block,Central Heating. |
St. Vincent's, Fairview—Alterations and Extension.
Mental Handicap:
Warrenstown House, Blanchardstown— Adaptations for disturbed children.
Peamount Hospital—Extensions for the mentally handicapped.
St. Vincent's Cabra—Social Education and Training Centre.
St. Joseph's Clonsilla—30 bed unit for adults and extension to Nurses Home.
Community Services:
Millbrook Health Centre, Tallaght.
Coolock Health Centre.
Ballinteer Health Centre.
Blanchardstown Health Centre.
Finglas Health Centre, Cardiffsbridge.
Welfare:
Home for the Aged, Navan Road.
Clonskea Home for the Aged.
Bray Home for the Aged.
Others:
St. Mary's Home and School for the Blind Merrion—New Infirmary.
MIDLAND HEALTH BOARD AREA
General:
Mullingar General Hospital—New Development.
County Hospital, Portlaoise—provision of new theatre facilities.
Psychiatric:
St. Loman's, Mullingar—New kitchen roof repairs.
Community Service:
Tullamore Wealth Centre.
Welfare:
Home for Aged—Athlone.
Home for Aged—Edenderry.
Home for Aged—Tullamore.
Home for Aged—Birr.
MID-WESTERN HEALTH BOARD AREA
General:
Limerick Regional Hospital
—New Cafeteria facilities.
—Psychiatric and Paediatric Units and Laboratory.
St. Ita's, Newcastlewest—100 bed unit.
Psychiatric:
Our Lady's, Ennis—General improvements scheme.
Mental Handicap:
St. Vincent's, Lisnagry—Dining and Occupational therapy rooms.
St. Anne's, Corville—Extension of Centre.
Brothers of Charity, Bawnmore—Provision of new centre.
Welfare:
Home for the Aged, Newcastlewest.
Home for the Aged, Roscrea.
NORTH-EASTERN HEALTH BOARD AREA
General:
Cavan General Hospital.
Mental Handicap:
St. Mary's Drumcar—Day administration unit, improved water supply and sewage works.
Welfare:
Home for the Aged, Cavan.
Home for the Aged, Drogheda.
NORTH-WESTERN HEALTH BOARD AREA
General:
Sligo General Hospital—Provision for Orthopaedic Services.
Letterkenny General Hospital—X-ray and O.P.D., Psychiatric Unit.
New Donegal District Hospital.
Letterkenny—New general hospital.
St. John's Hospital, Sligo—Reconstruction.
Psychiatric:
St. Conal's, Letterkenny—Improvement works.
St. Columba's Hospital, Sligo
—New boilerhouse, sanitary annexes.
Mental Handicap:
Cloonmahon Centre for adult mentally handicapped—provision of.
Cregg House—extension scheme.
Welfare:
Homes for the Aged—Falcarragh and Ramelton.
Homes for the Aged—Mohill.
Homes for the Aged—Manorhamilton.
SOUTH-EASTERN HEALTH BOARD AREA
General:
Ardkeen Hospital—extension, —Ophthalmic Unit.
St. Luke's Hospital, Kilkenny—Extension to O.P.D. and Casualty.
St. Dympna's Hospital, Carlow—Maternity Unit etc.
Airmount Hospital, Waterford—Major extension.
St. Joseph's Home, Dungarvan—New Convent and Nurses Home.
Psychiatric:
St. Senan's, Enniscorthy—improvements.
St. Otteran's, Waterford—Adaptation of St. Joseph's Unit.
Mental Handicap:
|
Carriglea |
—Assembly Hall,Workshop,New Water Supply etc. |
St. Patrick's, Kilkenny—Extensions.
Welfare:
Home for Aged, Morton Street, Clonmel.
Home for the Aged, Tipperary Town.
SOUTHERN HEALTH BOARD AREA
General:
New Cork Regional Hospital—Major development.
St. Finbarr's Hospital, Cork
—Public Analysis Laboratory and Geriatric Units etc.
—Provision of Neuro-Surgery.
Tralee—New hospital.
Psychiatric:
Our Lady's Hospital, Cork—Kitchen improvements.
Mental Handicap:
St. Mary of the Angels, Beaufort—Two adolescent chalets.
Community Services:
Accommodation for Community Care Staff, Tralee.
Welfare:
Home for the Aged—Youghal.
Home for the Aged—Middleton.
Home for the Aged—Fermoy.
WESTERN HEALTH BOARD AREA
General:
Castlebar General Hospital—Extension.
Portincula Hospital, Ballinasloe—O.P.D. and Casualty Department.
County Hospital, Castlebar—Pathology Laboratory.
Galway Regional Hospital—Extension to Maternity Department.
Psychiatric:
St. Brigid's Hospital, Ballinasloe
—Acute Unit,
Medium Stay Unit,
Sanitary Annexes.
Community Services:
Health Centre, Shantalla.
Health Centre, Ballina.
Mental Handicap:
Ballybaan—Village Development.
Welfare:
Home for the Aged—Carraroe.
Home for the Aged—Newcastle, Galway City.
What arises out of the allocation made last January?
Both.
No. The Government have not yet provided any money.
We have. As the former Minister is aware, it is an ongoing process. He was allocated capital moneys last January for job creation and that programme has been underway. In addition, we have grafted on to that an additional programme.
A supplementary estimate has not been introduced?
No; it would be mainly capital.
Can the Minister indicate how much money was allocated in January and how much additional money has been grafted on?
I have not those figures with me but in so far as the grafting operation is concerned most of the things involved consist of sanctions to start projects. Many of them will not start spending money until next year.
I understood from the Minister's reply that £16 million, financed by way of £13.5 million in last January's budget and £2.5 million from the Local Loans Fund and Hospitals Sweepstake Funds, was allocated. Was any other money included in the job programme and in the capital programme outlined in the Minister's reply?
Quite an amount of additional money was made available but it is mainly on the current side. The question deals with the capital side.
There is no additional money for capital projects.
That has not been necessary yet.
The Minister is still working on the amount of money granted last January.
Yes, because, unfortunately, the programme which was initiated by the Minister to start about April or May is only getting under way now. It is only now that it is beginning to absorb the capital concerned.
It is the money we allocated to do this work that the Minister has been publicising.
That is not so. I have added a number of things.
But the Minister cannot tell us how much.
For instance, one of the items is the employment of 130 extra public health nurses. That has not cost us anything yet. There is no extra demand for capital because the money allocated in last January's budget has not been used up.
It is sufficient?
I do not understand what the Deputy means by "sufficient". The money was not used. I am not blaming anybody. It was not used because of the procedures involved.
There was no reluctance to spend on our part. The schemes are only beginning.
To be fair to Deputy Corish I should like to state that the money provided was not held back but the health boards and other institutions concerned could not get their plans ready quick enough.
The Minister did not have to allocate any additional capital yet, although in his earlier reply he said he had.
Not yet, no. I said there were £16 million, £13½ million and £2½ million extra allocated that has been quite sufficient to carry us through so far.