Minister for Health unable to provide details of new completion date or an estimate of final costs for troubled development
The Minister for Health’s inability to provide a revised completion date or estimate of final costs for the new National Children’s Hospital shows that the Government has lost control of the project, according to Social Democrats TD Catherine Murphy.
“Minister Donnelly’s comments on RTÉ Radio this morning were deeply troubling. While conceding that the latest completion date of May 2024 will not be met, he refused to reveal the revised handover deadline put forward by the developer. This suggests there has been a further drift in the works schedule that far exceeds our worst expectations.
“Given that BAM have submitted more than 2,000 claims totalling €760 million, it is clear that the final cost of the hospital is going to come in well above the Government’s figure of €1.4 billion.
“The Minister’s insistence that the development is 90 per cent complete is also astonishing given recent claims by the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board (NPHDB) that just 27 out of 3,000 rooms are finished.
“With costs expected to soar above the €2 billion mark, this will end up being the world’s most expensive hospital. It beggars belief that the Minister is unable to provide even minimal clarity about what is the biggest capital project in the history of the health service.”
August 24, 2023