asked the Minister for Health whether he is prepared to make a grant towards the cost of providing improved amenities in the Longford County Home, particularly since the total cost of reconstruction will be in the region of £120,000.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Improvements to Longford County Home.
I am precluded by the terms of the Public Hospitals Act, 1933, from making grants from the Hospitals Trust Fund towards the cost of work at county homes other than the infirmary portion of them.
The whole question of the future of the county homes is being investigated, with particular reference to their improvement or reconstruction where, as in the case of Longford and many other county homes, the standard of accommodation falls below the minimum, judged by present-day standards. The problem is a large one, as the Deputy will appreciate, and I do not anticipate that it will be possible to announce the result of the investigation for at least another six months.