Closure Of Residential Homes For The Elderly In Northern Ireland

EDM number 1401 in 1993-94, proposed by DN Campbell-Savours on 28/06/1994.

That this House supports the campaign by resident and support groups to protect the interests of elderly people whose residential homes face closure in Bangor, North and West Belfast, and Ardview Ardglass, Co. Down; recognises that elderly women residents of Banks Residential Home, Bangor, Cairns House Residential Home, Belfast and Ardview House, Ardglass, have been forced to take their cases to court because the Eastern Health Board and subsequent health and social services trusts had acted unreasonably in failing to ensure that their views were properly taken into account; understands that residents' requests for information about the timing and procedure of the closure proposal have been met largely with silence and frustration; deplores the fact that elderly residents had to return to court on 9th June and may have to engage in further court action in September; regrets the continuing trauma and stress being caused to residents by the local trust's handling of the process and calls for trusts to respect the judge's advice that no action on closure be taken before the next court hearing; calls for careful reconsideration of the closure proposal by those charged with the welfare of many vulnerable, elderly people whose full rights as citizens in the community should be respected; and also calls on the Minister for these reasons to refuse to endorse the decision to close Ardview House and to reject any other decision for closure of The Banks, Cairns House and Old See House, respectively. (Relevant registered interest declared).

This motion has been signed by a total of 28 MPs.