Before coming to the Order of Business I propose to deal with a number of notices under Standing Order 31. I will call on Deputies in the order in which they submitted their notices to my office.
Request to Move Adjournment of Dáil under Standing Order 31.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to raise a matter of urgent national importance, namely, the position whereby elderly patients, whose sole income is the old-age pension, are being pressurised into private nursing homes and are being forced to sell their homes to meet the shortfall between the charge of a nursing home and the health board subvention; the minimum shortfall in such a case being €210 per week or €10,920 per annum.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to discuss the following matter of extreme importance, namely, to ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children why a CAT scanner has not been installed in Ennis General Hospital when the funding has been provided for same; and if the Tánaiste would immediately instruct the Mid-Western Health Board to install same in the interests of patients' safety.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate an issue of urgent public importance, namely, the continuing crisis in our accident and emergency units throughout the country, with hundreds of people lying on trolleys or sometimes chairs for many days, with hospital staff finding it difficult to cope; and the need for the Minister for Health and Children to introduce a package of emergency measures to alleviate the suffering of patients and their families.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to investigate further the plight of Ms Margaret Hassan, the Irish born aid-worker kidnapped in Iraq, and to evaluate and to plan any possible course of action which would secure her safe release on the basis that the Minister for Foreign Affairs has said he will help in any way to free her.
Having considered the matters raised by the Deputies, I do not consider them to be in order under Standing Order 31.