Minister for Health Simon Harris is facing an uphill battle as he attempts to deal with the fallout over the ownership of the new maternity hospital in Dublin.
Fierce controversy arose after it was announced that the Sisters of Charity would be handed full ownership of the planned new maternity hospital, scheduled to be built on the campus of St Vincent’s University Hospital in south Dublin. The charity owns this land.
But the charity has also failed to pay a large sum owed to a redress fund for victims of institutional abuse, among other dubious practices.
A recent online petition gathered upwards of 80,000 signatures to protest against the decision, prompting the St. Vincent’s Healthcare board to initiate a review of the matter.
Simon Harris is now fully embroiled in the controversy, and has called for ‘cool heads.’