Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. I will take his first question, in respect of starting again. I will pass the question on break clauses and the lease to the lawyers. Dr. Mahony went through issue of the layers of protection. We can do so again. She laid it out very well. The Deputy also asked another question. We can come back to it.

As regards how long it would take to start again, there is no way to accurately answer that question but my estimate, based on how long it takes the State to build hospitals, is that it would add ten to 15 years to the project. Some people may say that sounds like a very long time, and it is, but, unfortunately, the State takes a very long time to build hospitals. We know that from the hospitals in which we are involved. Would we get another adult hospital to agree to co-locate? That may be the case. It may be just a stand-alone maternity hospital. That would take a very long time. One must remember that even if we did that and it was a decade on, let us say, and we were discussing a final Cabinet decision on a new hospital, there is no guarantee that we would not be having some version of this debate. I will be bringing recommendations to the Cabinet in respect of locations for three elective hospitals. There is debate in respect of where they should go. All present know there was a big debate in respect of where the children's hospital should go. No matter what hospital proposal is brought forward to be considered by a government, there always seems to be good and healthy debate because people have different views and they want the right answer. It would add a very long period to the project.

On a human level, the idea of walking across Merrion Square and into Holles Street hospital to tell the clinicians who work there that we had the most exciting and important investment in the future of women's healthcare ready to go but failed to deliver it and we will be back to them in a decade with another site is unthinkable. We, as politicians, must not allow that to happen.

Ms O'Sullivan or Mr. O'Donoghue may wish to respond on the break clauses.