Mater Infirmorum Hospital, Belfast

HC Deb 03 July 1998 vol 315 c283W

Mr. Beggs

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which hospital services the Government are obliged to maintain at the Mater Infirmorum Hospital, Belfast under the terms of the 1971 Deed of Arrangement. [47868]

Mr. Worthington

The Mater Infirmorum Hospital entered the health service under the 1971 Deed of Arrangement, which secured the preservation of the Roman Catholic character and association of the hospital. The Deed set out specific requirements for the general administration of the hospital and provided for a review of the internal allocation of beds and facilities and for the preparation of a scheme for the initial reconstruction and modernisation of the hospital's buildings and facilities. The Deed of Arrangement does not require the maintenance of specific services at the hospital.