Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I have asked about the sanctions that might be applied, given that the contract is a two-sided process and that there is an obligation on the contractor's side. The contractor was slow to get the thing up and running, and we are now into an inflationary period. What I feel we are getting is an attitude of "Trust us" that all sanctions are being applied. This committee is required to satisfy itself regarding the matter rather than being told "Trust us". They are saying that some of the things are commercially sensitive. If something has been settled, it is gone and over. The decision has been made and it is no longer commercially sensitive. Some of the claims will fall into that category.

None of us is trying to add to the cost of this building. It is expensive enough and it is going on for longer In fact, part of the reason that we were told the two-stage process could not be walked away from was that it would delay the delivery of the hospital, but if they had gone somewhere else it probably would have been no later than this is going to be delivered anyway. We are at the point where we are in a circle of correspondence that is completely ineffective. We have to get the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board before the committee so we can ask some of those questions to our satisfaction. It could be doing an amazing job in settling claims and rejecting things, but I want to see that for myself in the context of things that have already been done. I am not saying we should be interrogating things that are going to the courts or that have not yet been settled. I want to see the process and how robust it is. There have been times when there has been less than a full complement of people on the board. It was without a chair for a while. It is time that we satisfied ourselves.