Local TD, Denis Naughten is calling on An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar TD to announce the new Emergency Department for Portiuncula Hospital and jobs on the IDA business campus in the Town when he visits both sites today.

When An Taoiseach visits Portiuncula Hospital we will be visiting the busiest and most overcrowded Emergency Department in Ireland in 2023 and I hope that he will announce the green light for the new modular Emergency Department which is being considered by the HSE and Government for the past 32 months.

This proposal was considered by the HSE this month and I hope it now leads to the Taoiseach announcing the go ahead today for this desperately needed development.

I took this specific issue up with the Taoiseach last month when I pointed out that Portiuncula is now the most overcrowded Emergency Department in the country!

This is an issue that I have also taken up both publicly and privately with An Taoiseach in the past: https://www.kildarestreet.com/search/?s=emergency+department+portiuncula+naughten

An Taoiseach will then visit the IDA campus in Ballinasloe where I hope that he will be making a positive jobs announcement, on foot of ongoing engagement with investors.

I also hope that he will give a clear commitment that the IDA will acquire the additional public lands adjoining the IDA park that are currently in the ownership of the HSE.

This is an issue that I have taken up both publicly and privately with An Taoiseach in the past: https://www.kildarestreet.com/search/…

I again raised this issue in the Dáil yesterday pointing out that “Ballinasloe, has under-utilised water, wastewater and utilities with an abundance of public owned serviced land but IDA Ireland will not secure that additional public land for expansion into the future”.