The Health Minister says transferring the running of maternity services from the Midlands Regional Hospital in Portlaoise to the Coombe is recognition of the fact that services at Portlaoise were not 'up to scratch'.
Leo Varadkar was speaking as a Memorandum of Understanding between the two hospitals was signed in Dublin earlier.
It comes days after a draft HIQA report into the deaths of five babies at Portlaoise was highly critical of the hospital and senior management in the HSE.
Here's what the Minister had to say when he was asked if the new agreement constitutes a vote of no confidence in Portlaoise:
