Máire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am disappointed that the Minister, Deputy Harris, is not present to hear these very important statements on the future health of the children of our nation and the biggest health project undertaken in the history of this State. I am aware of the presence of the Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, who represents Dublin South-Central. I have been a representative in that area. The project would have a direct impact on my village, Rialto. Rialto and the surrounding areas have endured almost a year of enabling works, which have tested our limits. We were waiting and believed the project would go ahead but it is now in abeyance and we are not really too sure what is going on. I mean no disrespect to the Minister of State but I believe the Minister should be here and have some regard for the Senators who are demanding a fit-for-purpose state-of-the-art health facility for our children.

We need a new hospital and need to build it without delay. It is quite clear from the programme broadcast on Monday night that children languishing on the waiting list for necessary treatments are suffering inexcusably. We are neglecting them while they lie in pain. The issue is one of capacity. We have all agreed on this and, therefore, the last things we need at this stage are political games that prevent construction. No project can remain outside oversight, however, so we have deep reservations about the recently reported outlandish increase in the cost of construction of the hospital. The initial estimate was approximately €600 million and it rose to an estimated €1 billion, if not more. Can the Minister of State account for this increase and explain whether there was a significant underestimation? To what can the substantial increase be attributed? Since it was first mooted in 2012 that the new hospital would be at St. James's, the estimated cost has increased by over €500 million. The cost has doubled and it does not cover the enabling costs I have talked about or the planning costs, including the cost of the failed Mater Hospital project, amounting to €30 million or €40 million. The planning cost for the St. James's project has amounted to €40 million so far. Enabling costs amount to €80 million. There is a doubling of the cost to the public purse. The reported cost per bed of €1.9 million seems quite extravagant. Perhaps the Minister of State could address that in her response.

I spent over a year of my life planning for and involved in this project, including in my capacity as a representative at the oral hearings of An Bord Pleanála in Kilmainham each day in December 2015.

We need to have the hospital built. The children of our country need it built; it is as simple as that and we must not lose focus. A children's hospital was first proposed back in 1993. Some 24 years later, there still has not been a block laid. Sinn Féin's aim is to have a state-of-the-art facility to provide first-class professional care and deal with the complexity of modern paediatrics. The new children's hospital envisaged was to be open and operational by 2020 but this is now in doubt given Mr. Tony O'Brien's statement on Monday that the HSE cannot afford to build the hospital and that it is not prepared to sign the contract that was awarded to BAM Ireland on Friday last.

I do not believe the Minister of State has answered any of my questions. She needs to repeat the cost and break it down. We need value for money and a cost analysis. We are running away with ourselves. The dogs on the street know we do not need the history of what we need or do not need. We are asking for a breakdown of costs and not a history lesson. We do not need a further delay. It is unsatisfactory that we are at this stage. It is almost like a farce in which a serious matter is taken too lightly.