John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for facilitating answers to these questions. If he does not have the facts at his immediate disposal a note will suffice.

Is there anything the Minister wants to say on our experience with Carillion recently and PPPs? Does it have anything to teach us? Is the Minister exploring other options to PPPs that might free up capital or take advantage of capital in respect of investment in infrastructural projects?

I have a specific question on the HSE. We have a note here that the HSE is potentially facing a financial shortfall in 2018. Has that been accounted for in the baseline budget figures for 2018? I will relate that to a specific example in my constituency where Tallaght hospital has two or three major projects, one being an intensive care unit that is at design stage. The other project is a renal unit that had been approved for funding by the HSE. Tender documents issued for it in December with the intention of awarding that contract in March. The HSE has now extended the tender process until October with the hope that it can award the contract in early 2019 when funding may be available. My understanding is that the problem lies with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform side of the Minister's area of responsibility. The HSE formally confirmed funds last June but it is now citing an unanticipated deficit in the capital budget for 2018 arising from cutbacks applied by the Department in October. That has now caused the delay not just of this project, which is not just a once-off project but is part of a jigsaw of projects about which Tallaght hospital management have been pretty keen and excited. I would welcome the Minister's comments in that regard.

If there is a deficit in the capital budget, could the Minister confirm that funding is available for the national maternity hospital and where will it come from? What is the status of that project in terms of capital funding?