Tag Archives: Poots

Speaking in a debate at Stormont about care for the Elderly, Ulster Unionist MLA Roy Beggs Jnr has expressed his alarm at the lack of specific local plans to replace Residential Care Homes such as Lisgarel in Larne, Joymount in Carrickfergus and Clonmore in Newtownabbey- which have again been earmarked for closure by Health Minister Edwin Poots. Mr Beggs told the Assembly: “In my response to the Transforming Your Care proposals, I urged caution regarding the proposed changes to services for the elderly. I also expressed concern at the high risk of the flawed proposal to close so many homes so rapidly. I highlighted issues such as the increasing need for respite care in this new model, where domiciliary care increasingly becomes the primary source of retaining our older population in their own home. With our growing older population, I believe that there will also be a need for increased … Continue reading →

UUP MLA Roy Beggs and a representation of Lisgarel residents will be meeting Sean Donaghy the Chief Executive of the Northern Health and Social Care Trust in Ballymena later in the week. The East Antrim MLA said: “Another 12 weeks ‘consultation’ process is being embarked upon. However, it seems to me that to all intents and purposes the decision to close has been made. In 2009 the then Minister of Health Michael McGimpsey refused to accept a similar proposal which came from the Northern Trust. This was after an unprecedented public reaction to a consultation at that time. This time however, the closures have emerged out of a complicated Report called ‘Transforming Your Care’ also known as the Compton Report. This was published in December 2011 and after a plethora of sub reports, the Minister made a statement to the Assembly last month stating that he was accepting the recommendations … Continue reading →

Commenting on news that the Northern Health Trust are proposing to close all 9 of their remaining statutory residential homes, Ulster Unionist Health spokesman Roy Beggs MLA said: “I am shocked that Minister Poots’ ink is no sooner dry on his decision to close half of all the statutory homes across Northern Ireland, now the Northern Health and Social Care Trust are already proposing the closure of the remaining Trust Residential care places.” “I have been warning for some time that widespread closures would be part of the outworking of part of the Transforming Your Care proposals, endorsed in its entirety by the Minister for Health Edwin Poots. However, even in the worst case scenario I never envisaged the Trust proposing a total closure of all of their residential care homes by 2017. “I have also asked, but have yet to receive an answer, to a simple question: what has … Continue reading →