Comhaontas Glas i nDeisceart an Dúin
Lecale presentation to John McGrillen, originally uploaded by downgreenparty.
A delegation from Lecale Conservation, including Green Party Cllr Cadogan Enright, recently visited Down District Council Headquarters to make a presentation to outgoing Clerk of the Council and Chief Executive John Dumigan.
Mr Dumigan was presented with a watercolour by the group in recognition of his service to the council and his help with environmental and heritage campaigns.
DOWN Councillor Cadogan Enright has made a protest to the NI Assembly Heath Committee on its first visit to the new Downe Hospital in Downpatrick. He issued committee members with a letter calling on a “fair chance” for the hospital to establish itself.The South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust has responded to Councillor Enright protest.
To: Assembly Health committee members.
“I attach a letter copied to me revealing new cuts at the Downe Hospital in cardiac testing – a vital facility for the people of this area.
“This is predicated on a management failure to recruit and train staff that will supposedly be remedied in 6 months time. What type of planning goes on across the Health Service in NI that leads to these repeated crises so often related to staffing issues?
“The letter justifies the Trust’s position on the basis that similar cut-backs occurred in Lisburn at the Lagan Valley Hospital with no issues. However, people in Lisburn have easy access to the City Hospital, Royal, Mater and Craigavon Hospitals with access via good roads.
“People in Killough, Ardglass and Strangford town have no such easy access to the Ulster Hospital which is much harder to reach. Even people in Newcastle and Downpatrick find the Ulster Hospital hard to reach and there is no public transport.
Jim Wells, chairman of the NI Assembly Health Committee receives a written protest from Councillor Cadogan Enright. Included, centre, is Barbara Haig, Green Party member.
“The letter talks about “Enhanced links with Ulster Cardiology…and Ulster Cardiologists” – this is symptomatic of the malaise in the Health Service in NI as a whole. How can consultants be linked to one hospital only? Why are they not conducting clinics at hospitals around NI? Why are they not described as “Trust Consultants?”
“Our local Downe Hospital is not being given a fair chance to establish itself, and is suffering from dozens of small cuts that cumulatively will create a crisis around numbers attending it as people are forced to attend other hospitals for services that should be available locally.
“Even the bus service to the new hospital fails to stop outside the hospital entrance, leaving sick and disabled people having to walk out of the hospital grounds or looking for taxis.
“Our community values the rapid access to the chest pain clinic so much so that when this service was launched in the Old Downe just a few years ago, it was the local community that paid for the equipment.
“The protection of local hospitals is fundamental to the Green Party Agenda. I will do everything in my power to protect and enhance the Downe, and I particularly call on local politicians on the Assembly Health committee to do the same.
“I call on the Assembly Health Committee to insist that the Downe be allowed to properly re-establish itself and commit itself to the support of local services in Downpatrick and elsewhere around NI,”
Signed, Councillor Cadogan Enright, Green Party 20th May 2010
(Downpatrick, Ardglass, Killough, Ballyhornan and Strangford Town).
Cllr Cadogan Enright
Brian Wilson, Green Party MLA predicted that his party collegue Cllr Cadogan Enright was now well placed to take the sixth and last Assembly seat in South Down in next years MLA elections. He was celebrating the excellent result of his party Collegue Cllr Cadogan Enright in coming fifth, with 901 votes, in last weeks Westminster election and well ahead of the Alliance party and said;
“On our first Westminster outing in South Down we have leap-frogged Allaince and have now beaten them four times in a row with the Stormont Assemby election, local elections and in the EU elections in this area and have two elected reps where they have none. I congradulate councllor Enright and the Down District Green Party who drove this excellent result. This result will make a huge difference in the local and MLA elections next year”.
Cllr Cadogan Enright said; “The Greens are now the best-placed alternative party in South Down to win the sixth seat in the upcoming MLA elections next year with 2 elected representitives already in South Down we are the only alternative party to be represented right across South Down. There will no longer be two Unionist quotas in South Down , and we can expect trasfers from all sides to pick up the sixth seat. I would like to thank all those who voted for us, overcoming the tempation of many voters to vote tactically in the battle between MInisters Ruane and Ritchie.”
“Within the next few weeks we will be announing our candiates for the local elections which will be at the same time as the MLA elections next year. I would like to thank my party collegue Barbara Haig for contesting Strangford on our behalf. This gave us the opportunity to canvass Ballynahinch and Killyleagh as well as South Down and will assist us in winning seats in Newcastle, Rowallene, Ballynahinch and Newcastle in next years local elections when we will be fighting every electoral area in the county council..” Concluded Green Party Councillor Cadogan Enright.
