Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I expect we are likely to know in the month of June but I will confirm that with Children’s Health Ireland and write to the Deputy. The Deputy is entirely correct that this requires a lot of planning. I make the point that, thanks to the legislation passed in this House, which the Deputy co-operated on and supported, we now have Children's Health Ireland, which is one hospital structure, albeit operating over three facilities, so there is already joined-up thinking.

There is one chief executive officer for Children's Health Ireland, which takes in Crumlin and Temple Street hospitals, as well as the paediatrics aspect of Tallaght Hospital and that helps significantly with the planning. Often when a new facility is opened there are a number of hours on day one and, a couple of weeks or months later. Those hours have been expanded. That is a matter for Children's Health Ireland to decide as the statutory board with responsibility for children's health in Ireland and it will make that known as soon as its plans are finalised.

I am satisfied, based on what I have been told, that there is serious additionality here for children. We are talking about 3,600 additional fracture orthopaedic appointments and 2,750 general paediatric outpatient appointments for our children in Connolly Hospital between July and December as a result of this new facility. We have had a lot of debate about the cost of the new children's hospital and this is a really tangible example of the benefit. I will check for the Deputy where those ten consultant posts have come from because I do not have that information available. I will write to her.

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