Fine Gael minister backs Harris amid resignation call
By Cillian Sherlock, PA
The Tánaiste is “full of compassion” and “empathy”, a Fine Gael minister said as he backed Simon Harris amid calls for his resignation.
Enterprise Minister Peter Burke expressed support for his party leader on Monday after more than 1,000 people marched through the streets of Dublin in support of a young child who died after dealing with long delays for scoliosis surgery.
Nine-year-old Harvey Morrison, who had scoliosis and spina bifida, died on July 29th.
His parents, Stephen Morrison and Gillian Sherratt, said their son waited for years for spinal surgery, during which time the curve in his spine went from 75 degrees to 130 degrees.
By the time Harvey received spinal surgery last December, the curve had reached the point where it could not be fully corrected.
The curve caused his rib cage to twist around his lungs and heart, severely restricting his breathing.
His parents, opposition politicians and campaigners have called for Mr Harris, the Tánaiste and former minister for health, to step down after he pledged in 2017 that no child would wait more than four months for scoliosis treatment.
Over the weekend, Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill – who is also in the Fine Gael party – referenced the rally and said: “There are many ways our society can and should do better by its citizens.
“We can, we must and we will do better. This is the essence of politics and always will be.”
The comment received media attention as it fuelled speculation that Ms MacNeill was making an indirect criticism of Mr Harris.
Asked whether he supported his party leader in the wake of the comments, Mr Burke told reporters on Monday: “Absolutely I support the Tánaiste but first of all, we have to be very much aware that we have a family grieving here.
“I know as a father of two young children, it would be incomprehensible to lose one of them and to see what the family are going through now – Stephen and Geraldine – it is incredible, how fair they’ve been, I have to say.
“And I really give them my support too. It is, you know, one area we have to get better at resolving.”
Mr Burke added: “I think the Tanaiste is full of compassion, full of empathy. He’s a dad too, he’s a husband.
“He knows the pressures that families are under and he wants to do better.
“I want to do better, and the government wants to do better in this area – and quite frankly, we have to.”
“And a lot of resources have been put in, clinically led, into the HSE in this area that we haven’t seen the results from..
“We really need to see more progress now, and that’s one thing we’ll be really focused on as a Government.”
