National Maternity Hospital petition delivered to Taoiseach's office
A petition signed by thousands of people calling for the new National Maternity Hospital to be publicly owned has been presented to Taoiseach Micheál Martin’s office in Cork.
The petition, which has received over 10,000 signatures, states that the new National Maternity Hospital must "be a fully owned public hospital built on publicly owned land".
It was presented to Mr Martin’s constituency office by local campaigners and members of the group, Uplift, who dressed as Sister Michael of
The planned relocation of the hospital to a site at Elm Park, co-located with St Vincent’s Hospital, has seen much controversy linked to governance and ownership issues. The land is owned by the Religious Sisters of Charity order.
Campaigners are calling for a full public and secular National Maternity Hospital that is “free from religious influence and capable of providing the necessary reproductive healthcare”.
As the Government is about to decide the fate of the new National Maternity Hospital, Uplift campaigner Layla Wade said the petition was set up to “send a clear message to An Taoiseach Micheál Martin, this Government and Minister Stephen Donnelly to really deliver the message that we need a 100% public and secular new National Maternity Hospital".
Ms Wade said the country has “a shameful legacy of church influence” over healthcare, particularly that of women and pregnant people.
“We cannot let that legacy bleed into the 21st century at this stage. We’ve fought too hard with movements like Repeal.”
She said that after “the shameful legacy of our past when women's reproductive health was brutally controlled, we want a future where, no matter who you are or where you come from, we have healthcare that is safe, trustworthy, accessible to everyone, publicly owned and free of religious ethos.”
She said that legal assurances that abortion and other services can be delivered under the current structure are not enough.
Uplift director Siobhán O’Donoghue said before a deal is struck, the group is calling on the Taoiseach "to follow through on his stance when in opposition, and deliver a maternity hospital that provides reproductive healthcare free from church control".
The campaign has claimed that it has “expert legal advice” which demonstrates that “there is nothing standing in the way of the State owning the land and the new hospital”.
“It’s just a case of lack of political will,” Ms Wade said.
The Government said it is aware of concerns that have been raised regarding ownership and governance of the new NMH and recognise that these must be addressed.
“It is important to note that significant work has been undertaken in this regard,” the Department of Health has said.
Work is ongoing to finalise the legal arrangements that will underpin the relocation. Some of the core objectives include preventing “any influence, religious or otherwise", the department said.
The Sisters of Charity were contacted for comment.