Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday I raised the issue of the national children's hospital with the Taoiseach and the need to have it built and open for the children of Ireland. It has been delayed time and again and is now the most expensive hospital in the world. The Government has lost all control and credibility when it comes to the national children's hospital.

Today at the health committee we learned that, of the 3,000 rooms that should have been completed by now, only 27 are completed. Also at the committee, the board confirmed it has requested even more money from the HSE to finish the programme. This is above the €1.7 billion total programme costs. Will the Taoiseach tell us how much additional money the board has requested from Government? Will he clarify if that request is for outstanding claims by the developers or just to complete the work? Will he tell us, once and for all, when this fiasco will end? When will it open, how much will it cost and what is the additional money they are now looking for?

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