Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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637. To ask the Minister for Health his views on correspondence (details supplied) regarding the St. James's project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30967/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The new children's hospital is a commitment in the Programme for Government. In November 2012 the Government announced its decision that the new children’s hospital will be co-located with St James’s on its campus, ensuring it benefits from the broadest possible range of adult sub-specialty expertise and research capability, and will ultimately be tri-located there with a maternity hospital. Satellite centres, which will share governance and staffing with the new children's hospital, will be built on the campuses of Tallaght and Connolly Hospitals. While issues such as access are clearly very important, the Government's decision was based on the over-riding priority of best clinical outcomes for our children. Tri-location of adult, paediatric and maternity services brings benefits for children, adolescents, newborns and mothers. In all cases, the benefits of tri-location are maximised where the adult hospital provides the broadest possible range of clinical sub-specialties and expertise, readily accessible for paediatric and maternity patients on the shared campus. In addition, tri-location that delivers the most significant depth and breadth of clinical and academic research on site will enhance the potential of research to drive best clinical outcomes. St James's Hospital has the broadest range of national specialties of all acute adult hospitals, as well as strong and well established research and education infrastructure.

The National Paediatric Hospital Development Board is the body responsible for planning, designing, building and equipping the hospital and has been actively progressing the project on the new site. The Project Brief for the hospital on the St James's campus has been agreed, a decant strategy for the site is in place and is actively being progressed, and a preferred design team has been selected and is expected to be appointed in mid-July. Design development will then begin with the aim of making a planning submission in February 2015.

A number of specific concerns have been raised by this parent. Firstly, in regard to road access, I would like to reassure this parent that access planning will be a significant part of this project. The design team, to be appointed in mid-July, will include traffic management specialists as a key component. These specialists' role will include modelling of access routes and development of a mobility management plan to address traffic peaks.

In regard to green spaces, I can confirm that the Project Brief as approved specifies that the new hospital will include play areas, external gardens and courtyards.

On the concern about adult patients, I want to emphasise that no adults will be treated in the new children's hospital. Although it will be on a shared campus with St James's, with controlled corridor linkage, the new children's hospital will be a separate building with its own public entrance, paediatric ED and outpatient entrances, and only children will be treated there.

As design development gets underway, there will be structured process of stakeholder consultation and input which will be led through the Children's Hospital Group and will include children, young people, families, advocacy groups, the staff of the three children's hospitals and the community. I urge all stakeholders, including parents and parents' groups, to engage in this process.