Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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560. To ask the Minister for Health the detail of the apparent changes in cost implications regarding the development of the new children's hospital at St. James's Hospital; if the development will stay within its budgeted figure; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the development of the hospital at Connolly Hospital, Blanchardstown, would deliver a significant cost saving to the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37316/16]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Government decision in 2012 to co-locate the hospital with St James's, Ireland’s leading and largest acute, adult research intensive hospital, was made in the best interests of children, with clinical considerations paramount in the decision. Independent reviews since 2006 have reaffirmed the importance of co-location with a major adult teaching hospital.

Planning permission was granted for this new children’s hospital, as well as for two Paediatric OPD and Urgent Care Satellite Centres at Tallaght and Connolly Hospital, in April of this year, clearing the way for enabling works which began this summer on the campus of St. James's Hospital. It is expected that the satellite centres at Connolly Hospital and Tallaght Hospital can open in 2018, significantly enhancing access to urgent care and outpatient services for children from the Greater Dublin Area. Building work on the main site will be completed in 2020.

The previous Government committed to making €200m available from the sale of the National Lottery for the new children's hospital, adding to the existing €450m Exchequer funding and underlining the Government's commitment to the project. The 2014 estimate, as set out in the approved Project Brief, affirmed delivery of the core hospital, including both satellite centres, within this envelope. As with any capital project, it is essential that cost estimates be reviewed and refined as appropriate, including making prudent provision for construction inflation.

The National Paediatric Hospital Development Board, which is the statutory body charged with delivery of the capital project, is currently reviewing tenders, received at the end of October, for the main and specialist contractors for the hospital on the campus of St James’s and the two satellite centres. Due to the high profile nature of this project it is a highly competitive tender process and so it is anticipated that this will be reflected in the submissions tendered. Final capital costs will be available following tender evaluations. As the tendering process is still ongoing and for reasons of commercial sensitivity, details of cost estimates cannot be provided at this stage. It is my intention to bring a Memorandum to Government early in 2017 in relation to the new children’s hospital and associated satellite centres.

The cost of transitioning the new children's hospital to a site at Connolly Hospital has not been assessed in any detail given the fact that no such project exists. Additional to the capital cost of developing the children's hospital itself on the campus, a significant upgrade of Connolly Hospital would be required to achieve the same potential for quality of clinical outcomes as co-location/tri-location with St James’s, requiring very substantial investment of human and capital resources to develop over time into an adult tertiary hospital with critical mass supported by leading edge research facilities.