Save care homes and the Dal: Swann

ROBIN Swann MLA, the UUP North Antrim Assemblyman and Chief Whip, has thrown down the gauntlet to the newly-appointed Sinn Fein Health Minister 'to stop pussy footing, get her act in gear fast and guarantee the long-term futures of Pinewood and The Roddens care homes as well as Ballycastle's much-need Dalriada Hospital'.

Assemblyman Swann, who is also North Antrim UUP Chairman and Chairman of the All-Party Stormont Committee on Congenital Heart Conditions, issued his hard-hitting challenge in a series of questions.

Mr Swann asked the Minister for Health “will she remove the ban on permanent admissions to Pinewood and The Roddens residential care homes?”

He also asked for an update on the future status and utilisation of the Dalriada Hospital?

Mr Swann added: “Pinewood, The Roddens and Dalriada Hospital play very key roles to care in the community in North Antrim. We don’t want fancy rhetoric from the Sinn Fein Health Minister or indeed any other member of the DUP/Sinn Fein coalition at Stormont.

“We want to see action; we need a cast iron guarantee that these three much-needed community health facilities will be properly resourced and will remain open for the benefit of the people who both use and require their facilities.”