Debate contribution: Craigavon Area Hospital: Redevelopment

Debate contribution by Mr Philip McGuigan on 1 April 2025.

MLA: Mr Philip McGuigan
Party at the time: Sinn Féin
Date: 1 April 2025
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Private Members' Business
Heading: Craigavon Area Hospital: Redevelopment
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 4876647

Text

As everyone else has done, I thank the Members for tabling the motion. The timing of the debate is fortuitous, coming as it does a day after the Comptroller and Auditor General's report, which highlighted the fact that 16% of the imaging equipment used in patient scans in the North is out of date, thus impacting negatively on times for diagnostic processes. That, in turn, adds to the time for appropriate treatment and ultimately affects patient outcomes. Of particular concern in the report is the fact that the number of patients waiting longer than two weeks for a red-flag suspected cancer scan has increased from 260 to almost 1,800. Yesterday's report underlines the importance of properly investing in equipment and infrastructure across our health services. If people are to have confidence in hospital reconfiguration and transformation, the infrastructure that supports those must be fit for purpose. That includes the buildings, the workforce and the equipment. It includes all those things at Craigavon hospital. Sinn Féin understands the need to deliver the transformation of our health system in order to cut waiting times and provide high-quality services. Health transformation must be guided by evidence and partnership working. More detail regarding the categorisation of our hospital network, including Craigavon hospital, is required, and evidence behind those categorisations needs to be communicated in order to give the public confidence and better understanding. We also need to recognise the transformational potential of cross-border and all-Ireland health services. Craigavon is an acute hospital, so it must be supported to deliver acute services safely and sustainably. It must have up-to-date and modern equipment, and its building needs to be appropriate for patients and staff alike. The first line of the motion talks about:
"the importance of sustained capital investment in [the] hospital network".
As others have noted, the draft budget contains £390 million that the Minister has ring-fenced for capital projects, including the new maternity hospital, a new children's hospital and a learning and development centre. We were told in a previous Committee budget briefing that there are a significant number of new projects that the Department would like to commence in 2025-26 but are, unfortunately, unaffordable within the Department's capital budget allocation. Nevertheless, we propose to commence a mother-and-baby unit in Belfast and a new emergency department (ED) at Altnagelvin Area Hospital. There are capital projects, and, as the mover of the motion said, any discussion about Craigavon is further down the list. It would be good to hear the Minister's thoughts on that. We know that British Government policies of austerity have severely impacted on our ability in the North to provide first-class public services. As I have said on many occasions in the Chamber, nowhere can the impact of those disastrous austerity policies be seen as clearly as in their negative impact on health. For their part, the Executive have prioritised health and have a Programme for Government commitment to reduce waiting lists. The Health Minister gets 52% — £8·4 billion — of the Executive's Budget. Ultimately, it is the Minister who is responsible for spending that budget and for deciding where it is spent and how it is spent. He is also responsible for the trusts and their delivery. Our focus must be on improving patient outcomes through improving our healthcare services in Craigavon and across the North. That means having modern, fit-for-purpose buildings and equipment and taking a whole-system approach to the challenges that we face, such as the growing waiting times, ambulance waiting, handover times, workforce issues, early detection and preventative healthcare. We should do everything that we can to build a stronger, better health service across the North.

609 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Awaiting analysis

This record has not been analysed yet. It is not counted in any total until it has been assessed.

Disagree with this assessment?

Classifications can be challenged. A person reviews every challenge, and any change is recorded publicly above with its reason.

Challenge this classification