The Down Community Health Committee discussed the Alliance position on the 24/7 Downe Hospital ED campaign
When Alliance Councillors did not vote in favour of a motion calling for the re-opening of the 24/7 Downe A&E in Downpatrick at a recent meeting of Newry Mourne and Down District Council, the hitherto solidarity of the hospital campaign by the parties on the council was broken.
The unthinkable had happened. Why had Alliance representatives on the Council not wanted to vote for the motion?
It seems that central Alliance policy has come down on the local South Down representatives dictating they must not support the campaign to restore the 24/7 Accident and Emergency service at the Downe Hospital which had been running for over 10 years.
This about turn defies the support Alliance showed in previous years.
The situation has festered on and finally came to a head at a meeting held in Denvir’s Hotel last night (Monday 8th September) in Downpatrick when committee members and local councillors and MLA’s expressed their concern at the Alliance position breaching party solidarity on this key health issue.
Speaking at the well attended meeting of the Down Community Health Committee (DCHC) in Denvir’s Hotel, Chairman Eamonn McGrady said: “We have to consider now what we do with the petition that has been running now for many weeks and has raised thousands of signatures.
“We have to present it to the Health Minister and this could be done on the floor of the Assembly.
“Recently we met with South Down Alliance MLA Andrew McMurray and the Alliance’s Health Committee member Danny Donnelly MLA, at a meeting in the St Patrick’s Centre in Downpatrick on Friday 5th September.
“We made it quite clear that we were disappointed in the Alliance position.”
Ann Trainor, DCHC Vice Chair, said: “This must hve been the worst meeting I have ever been to since I got involved in the hospital campaign since 1976. Danny Donnolly said clearly that Alliance policy did not support the Down Community Health Committee’s campaign to restore the Downe 24/7 A&E.”
A furious Anne Trainor added: “In the past, Alliance like other parties always supported our campaigns which were cross-community and cross-party. It should be up for the local people to determine what they want and the politicians to deliver it. That’s democracy.
“This is not a reflection on the local Alliance representatives who had little choice in this matter.”
Also attending the meeting, DCHC member Aidan Harris, said: “I’ve never attended a meeting with Alliance when they refused to support the campaign.
“I asked Danny Donnelly straight out, did Alliance support the campaign or not? He replied that Alliance was not in the position at the moment to support it.
“We need to look at what the other Trusts are doing now. And coming up to the next election Alliance are a disgrace for any political party to say they will not support our campaign.”
Eamonn McGrady added: “They appear to be waiting to see what the Health Minister is going to offer in his health reconfiguration. Our position has been clear on this issue of the Downe 24/7 A&E for years. We have always enjoyed cross-party support.
“We will continue to talk to people about the hospitals. There are a number of really hard stories that may become public shortly.
“It was a tough meeting lasting three hours, hell for leather, and Alliance left the meeting clearly knowing our position.”
Mr McGrady invited comments from the floor and first up was Cllr Philip Campbell (Sinn Féin). He said: “The DCHC and the campaign has always been cross-community in the past.”
Pat McGreevy from Suicide Down to Zero said: “Whether this is an indecision on Alliance’s part, they have to bite their tongues now. They have isolated themselves. I thought that the Party Spokespeson for Health would have been there.”
John Trainor said: “All parties need to openly re-confirm their support for the DCHC’s campaign.”
Anne Trainor proposed that the DCHC write to the Alliance Party executive as soon as possible and ask for an explanation why Alliance health policy is not supporting the Downe A&E campaign which is supported by the local population in East and South Down and the local political parties.
There was further discussion and minds focussed again on the petition, and how to present it to the powers that be to let them know that the DCHC will continue its fight for a 24/7 A&E service at the Downe Hospital.
Down News asked the Alliance Party for a right to reply but they chose to refrain at this moment. My door is always open.
The Sinn Féin and SDLP political reps at the meeting in Denvir’s Hotel were more subdued that normal given the gravity of the meeting.
Whatever has happened in the hiatus with Alliance, the DCHC has assured that the campaign is set to roll on calling for transparency, accountability, openness, local democracy and full inclusivity in its campaign for the restoration of the Downe Hospital 24/7 A&E.
