Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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152. To ask the Minister for Health the status of the discussions regarding the governance and ownership of the new national maternity hospital; when the discussions will conclude; the timeline for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9987/19]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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A significant amount of work has been undertaken to develop a legal framework to protect the State’s significant investment in the National Maternity Hospital (NMH) relocation project, which involves the development of a new maternity hospital on the campus of St Vincent’s University Hospital at Elm Park.

The overall framework now being put in place will, unequivocally, copper-fasten the principle that patient care in the new hospital will be delivered without religious, ethnic or other distinction, and that any relevant medical procedure, which is in accordance with the laws of the land, will be carried out at the new hospital.

My Department continues to engage with both the National Maternity Hospital and St Vincent’s Healthcare Group in relation to this legal framework. Work to finalise the suite of legal documents is ongoing and is expected to be completed early this year.