Very large numbers expected at public meeting to save St Michael's Hospital - huge protests expected
Very large numbers were expected to attend a protest public meeting in Dun Laoghaire on Tuesday 12 June, regarding the possible sale of St Michael's hospital to private developers. The public meeting will take place at 8pm in the Kingston Hotel in Dun Laoghaire.
Very large numbers were expected to attend a protest public meeting in Dun Laoghaire on Tuesday 12 June, regarding the possible sale of St Michael's hospital to private developers. The public meeting will take place at 8pm in the Kingston Hotel in Dun Laoghaire.
Richard Boyd Barrett, People Before Profit Alliance representative for Dun Laoghaire began campaigning on the issue of St Michael's over the last week of the general election campaign when it emerged that developer Noel Smyth was looking to purchase the hospital land.
Thousands of leaflets alerting the public to the threat to the hospital were distributed and the petition calling for the HSE, Government and Council to secure the future of the hospital was launched. Large numbers of people have already signed the petition opposing any plan to sell or re-locate the hospital.
The petition also calls for the government and HSE to upgrade and expand local health services at both St Michael's and Loughlinstown hospital's , which have been reduced and run-down over recent years.
As a result of the campaigning work by the People Before Profit Alliance, the St Vincent's Hospital group, who own St Michael's, issued a statement confirming that they were involved in preliminary negotiations with Noel Smyth regarding the possible sale of the St Michalel's site and re-location of the hospital.
Richard Boyd Barrett, the organiser of the meeting said:
"We have had an overwhelming response since we began our campaigning on this issue. People are absolutely outraged at the suggestion that the hospital site should be sold to a private developer for yet more high-rise apartments and that the hospital might be re-located. There is no doubt that there will be a very big and angry attendance at our meeting tonight and the campaign is likely to escalate from there.
Our campaign has already had some effect in that we have smoked out the St Vincent's hospital group who had been carrying on these negotiations without the knowledge of the hospital staff or public. Because of our campaigning and petition gathering we have forced the the St Vincent's Hospital Group to make a statement on the rumours of the possible sale of the hospital. They have confirmed that they are in negotiations with Noel Smyth on the possible sale of the hospital site and that Noel Smyth does intend to make an offer to buy it. Smyth has already purchased a significant amount of land around the hospital and seems intent on gaining control of a major chunk of Dun laoghaire town - no doubt for a mini-manhattan style super-development of high-rise apartments.
It is simply unacceptable that a public hospital should be sold to a private developer. We need to improve and expand local health services and upgrade facilities at both St Michael's and Loughlinstown at their current locations It is also totally unaccptable that a single private developer should be allowed determine the future of Dun laoghaire town centre on a purely profit driven basis and without any consultation with the public.
We intend to fight this plan tooth and nail and stop it in it's tracks. We think it is urgent we act immediately before any deal is done and the hospital is sold. We expect a very large turn out tonight and massive protests can be expected to follow soon. Just as was the case with our campaign over Dun laoghaire baths, ‘people power' will be the key to prevent any sale or re-location of the hospital."