Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The proposal is being progressed and is working its way through the various stages. The public spending code is a very laborious process. It was put in place after the cost overruns at the national children's hospital. There is a balance to be struck between managing the costs in the public interest and trying to build facilities as quickly as possible.

There is a balance to be struck between managing the costs, in the public interest, and trying to build facilities as quickly as possible. I would like to see these things moving a lot quicker. I do not think we are good at putting in place healthcare infrastructure quickly enough. When it gets put in place it tends to be of a very high quality and capacity, but I share the Deputy's frustration. However, the project is moving forward and it is worth noting that a lot of investment is going into the hospital, for example, in the radiation and oncology building, as I said. There is a new 12-bed cardiothoracic ward, in which have made a €5 million investment. I met the team there recently, and the ward is making a big difference to patient waiting lists. It is true that projects of this scale unfortunately take a very long time and I think they probably take too long, but it is only one of several very big healthcare investments that are being made in Galway and the hospital.

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