Mary Ann O'Brien (Independent) | Oireachtas source

"Ideal world" is the correct phrase. The Dolphin report recommended that a master plan should be provided by whatever hospital was chosen. I have written to the Minister for Health and made a freedom-of-information request and the only master plan I could find from St. James's Hospital dated from 2008. It has never had a master plan including a maternity hospital.

We are all human beings and this is vital to the future. We all care so much about children and the future generations and we should be prepared at this stage to take a step back. I go back to St. James's, the idea of wasting time and the idea that the Minister, Deputy Varadkar, might consider swapping to Connolly hospital or Blanchardstown for a site. A media report yesterday said that Deputy Varadkar had written to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Howlin, to say he did not have the money to put the information technology systems into the children's hospital. The money is only sufficient to build it, not to kit it out. I have not spoken to him since I saw that. If we went to Connolly hospital, we would not only have the space for the maternity hospital, but the cost would be €500 million as opposed to €650 million. I remind the Minister of State that with St. James's Hospital, we started with a budget of €485 million and are up to €650 million now. It was admitted yesterday that we do not have anything in our budget.