‘I will not apologise’ says Poots

Speaking following a protest last Friday outside his constituency office in Lisburn, Mr Poots said he enjoyed the challenge of his Ministerial position, which many saw as a “poisoned chalice” and that he would “not apologise for putting public safety ahead of political concerns”.

A protest was held last week calling on Mr Poots to resign his ministerial position due to his stance on a variety of issues, including blood donation, the closure of care homes and gay adoption.

However, Mr Poots was scathing of the small scale protest and said he would continue to serve the people who elected him.

“In relation to the protest held,” said Mr Poots, “the only people who are entitled to give ‘Poots the boot’ are the people who elected me in the first instance.

“The small group of people who make a lot of noise are an affront to democracy in that I was elected by the people and serve them. Those who held the protest are from a variety of political interest groups, a number of whom stood in previous elections, including the Socialist Party, but failed to win any mandate from the people. The fact that it was widely publicised on social media and buses arranged to bring people in from Belfast and they could only gather up around 20 people, means they are unrepresentative of the community.”

Mr Poots said he had received widespread support in the wake of the protest and thanked those who have voiced that support. “What I have greatly appreciated over the course of the last few weeks are the numerous people who have contacted me through letter, telephone and on social media or stopped me in the street to offer me encouragement.”

The Health Minister continued: “Over the course of my political career I have helped all sorts of people from all sorts of backgrounds and that is something that is well recognised in the local community. No one is asked their religious views, sexuality or political background when they seek my support. In terms of my work as Health Minister, I inherited what many view as a poisoned chalice but it is a job I have enjoyed the challenge of.

“In March 2011 people were warning that there were going to be 4,000 lay-offs in the Department of Health and that it would end up in administration before the end of the next financial year. I have managed to not just maintain services but to improve services in spite of the cuts imposed by the Conservative/Liberal Democrat government at Westminster.”

Mr Poots also pointed out that in recent months a number of new health facilities and funding have been announced throughout Northern Ireland, including funding for a new out of hours surgery at the Lagan Valley Hospital.

“Over the course of the last few months, we have seen exciting new developments such as 24 hour Cath Labs for victims of heart attacks, which will reduce the number of deaths and considerably increase the length of life after a heart attack. The finance has been announced for a new children’s hospital, financial support has been provided to allow a new hospice to proceed, as well as financial support to allow Mencap to build a new facility which will be the first of its kind in the UK, supporting children with learning disabilities and in the South Eastern area we are supporting the Alcohol and You project. These are some of the things that have happened over the course of the last few months but which are seldom mentioned by the mainstream media.”

Mr Poots also addressed the issue of the ban on blood donation by homosexuals and said the policy had served the country well for many years.

“With respect to the issue of blood donation, risky behaviour brought about exclusions in the 1980s,” he said. “Whilst it is recognised that screening is better than during that period, it is also recognised that HIV infection is on the increase.

“The judge who ruled on the case did not recognise any prejudice or bias in my decision making,” Mr Poots continued.

“His reason for overturning the ban was on the basis that it allowed a very small amount of blood to come in from England, which amounted to 14 units of blood. This is a decision which I find somewhat bizarre.”

In defiance of those who have called for his resignation, Mr Poots added: “I will never apologise for putting public safety ahead of political concerns.”