Results 8,661-8,680 of 35,131 for speaker:Seán Fleming

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: With regard to the contract, I know there is one and the board went in with the first 10% with the detailed design, which is about 10% of the final price, and the other 90% is subject to detailed design. Who decided that was the best way to go? The board could have taken a bit longer and tied it down before it started. Did the board feel rushed to get on site? Who made the decision to...

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: Is Mr. Costello saying the State decided to take all the risk? There was no risk-sharing here.

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: I am nearly finished. I saw the financial report accounts. The European Investment Bank has provided €490 million to support the construction of a new children's hospital and the two paediatric outpatient and urgent care centres. What way does it work? Is the funding of this coming through borrowing? Who got that €490 million? What rate is it? Is it part of the NTMA's...

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: At what rate?

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: So it comes to the NTMA but it goes into the overall pool of the NTMA. Is the Department going back to it now for the other almost €1.5 billion at that rate?

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: Does the NTMA have a view on a State agency for Ireland coming out and saying it has a project that will cost a number of million and would like to borrow €490 million through the European Investment Bank at that long-term rate for the major investment? It has been hearing in recent days that it is actually €1.4 billion or €1.7 billion depending on what one looks at....

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: Have we damaged our reputation?

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: If a business went to a bank to fund 60% of a project and then came back to the bank two years later and said the project had almost doubled in cost, it would not get a good reception.

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: I know but it has State backing. That will not happen. We are nearly finished. There is one other item. The phrase was used earlier before the last break when we were talking about a water sprinkler. It is in the last notes of the accounts. The note refers to events after the year end and it talks about the Bord Pleanála decision. It states, "A life-safety sprinkler system...

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: What is a life-safety-----

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: So it is not just water.

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: Is the BS EN 12845 the standard being operated?

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: It is more extensive.

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: My final question to Mr. Breslin is about his serious concerns about what has happened. He cannot be happy. Is it too early to ask if he is happy to recommend that the board continues? The children's hospital has to continue.

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: The project is sacrosanct. Nobody can say anything other than that.

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: Mr. Breslin can understand that is why I am actually more concerned about the PwC report about where we are from today to completion. What has happened is tragic. We cannot change the past but we can, to some extent, control what will happen from now on. The most important thing is there has to be some absolute assurance in place for the future costs. We have completed our extensive work....

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: Obviously they did not transfer to the Department of Health. That is another concern.

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: The witnesses will learn their lesson but none of them will ever be doing a national children's hospital again. It is supposed to be here for a century. The Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment, the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport or some other Government Department will be doing other projects with equivalent expenditure. That is why I get concerned....

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: I appreciate there are members of the public present in the Public Gallery but it is an Oireachtas committee and only members of the Oireachtas may speak.

Public Accounts Committee: National Paediatric Hospital Development Board: Financial Statements 2017 (31 Jan 2019)

Seán Fleming: We are happy to speak to members of the public separately but we will conclude the meeting now. I thank those present in the Public Gallery for watching, learning and feeding back into the Committee of Public Accounts. If they feel we have something to contribute to the process or if they want to come back through the Committee of Public Accounts with an observation, we would be happy to...