Results 241-260 of 471 for speaker:Cathy Bennett
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: I thank everybody for coming today. Regarding the children's hospital, the public is completely outraged at what seems to be a ballooning budget all the time with no end in sight. I am trying to get a handle on the scale of the mismanagement. The National Paediatric Hospital Development Board was established in 2007 and in 2009, the then Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, announced that the...
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: That is what was stated at the time, going back through the-----
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: That is what was stated at the time. In the 18 years since the board was established, as Mr. Gunning stated today, there have been 15 completion dates and the most recent cost estimate was €2.24 billion. From my calculations, we are now being told that the hospital will open in June 2026. BAM has been the contractors and claims and disputes have cost €853 million. Is that...
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: When we go back, we can blame BAM for everything but I want to know who bears the responsibility for this and who gave this build-as-you-go contract that has left us in this situation. Was it the witnesses, the board or the Minister?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: A contract was signed for a blank cheque, therefore.
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: It is-----
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: Was that in addition to the first plans that went to-----
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: Should that not have been budgeted for in the initial cost?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: It is a build-as-you-go contract being handed out by the board and the Minister. To go back to my question, was it Mr. Gunning, the board or the Minister who decided to go with this build-as-you-go contract that has a blank cheque?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: I just want a name. I just want to know who is to blame.
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: I will ask the question again. Was it the Minister who signed that contract?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: To reiterate, there was gross incompetence in respect of that and what has happened in the years following that. Does Mr. Gunning agree that there has been incompetence in this having gone this far? The people are very angry.
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: Who is the board directing that anger at? It is at BAM? Does the board not blame itself in any way?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: Okay.
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: That is okay. It is the State's approach. I want to keep that in mind as I go on to my next point. In 2017, the then Minister for Health, Deputy Simon Harris, gave a commitment that no child would wait for the treatment of scoliosis for longer than four months by the end of the year. How many children are currently waiting for longer than four months? At what point will that commitment be met?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: That commitment was never reached. It was not reached in four months and still has not been reached at this time. Those non-medical grade springs were placed in the bodies of children with scoliosis who were under CHI's care. One line that stood out to me in the HIQA report was that children were not protected from the risk of harm. Does Ms Nugent accept this has been the case?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: Does Ms Nugent accept that Children's Health Ireland has failed abysmally to keep children safe under its care?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: In a separate and distinct review, the Nayagam report was also commissioned regarding clinical outcomes for patients who had spinal surgeries. That is because there were high rates of return to surgery and infections. Is that correct?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: I believe that report was completed in September 2023. Is that correct?
- Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland: Discussion (22 May 2025)
Cathy Bennett: It is still not complete. Is there an interim report that was supposed to be produced?