Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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262. To ask the Minister for Health the details of the approved level of legal fees contained within the figure of €1.433 billion approved for the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board; the status of the further request by the board for approval of legal fees estimated for 2020 to 2022 of €15 million; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39159/20]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The NPHDB has the statutory responsibility and resources to plan, design, build, furnish and equip the new children’s hospital. The Government was advised in December 2018 that the overall cost to complete the new children’s hospital capital project is €1,433m.

A figure of €53 million was approved at that time for ‘other costs’. The ‘other costs’ includes NPHDB direct costs, Design Team fees & Specialist consultants comprising of legal, audit, procurement & independent conciliator.

The previous Government published a report of the escalation in national children's hospital costs in April 2019. The PwC report recommended that the NPHDB strengthen its project controls, including in respect of claims management. This has been done and the NPHDB has a robust process in place for the assessment of claims by the Contractor in accordance with the Construction Contract. The NPHDB has financed the implementation of the PwC recommendations, including strengthening claims defence, from within its resources, using its contingency fund.

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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263. To ask the Minister for Health the current working assumptions of his Department in respect of the estimated completion date and final cost of the national paediatric hospital building project; the role of his Department in respect of cost containment on this project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39162/20]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Under the contract, the new children's hospital is due to be completed by the end of 2022 and handed over to Children's Health Ireland to open in 2023 after a period of commissioning. There will be delays associated with the requirement to cease works on the site of the new Children’s Hospital due to Covid-19 restrictions. As of March 2020, when the site closed due to Covid-19, the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board (NPHDB) was of the view that the Main Contractor was behind schedule on the construction works.

The current overall capital build cost of the project is €1,433bn. This includes all of the capital cost for the main hospital at St James's Hospital campus, the two Outpatient Department and urgent care centres at Connolly and Tallaght Hospital campuses, equipment for the three sites, and the construction of the carpark and retail spaces. The € 1.43bn figure on capital cost as set out above does not take account of the impact of COVID on the construction sector, including the NCH.

In addition to the capital project there is a broader programme of activity associated with the integration and transfer of the services of the three children’s hospitals to the new sites under development. The inclusion of these elements alongside the capital build account for a total overall project cost of €1.73 billion.

The PwC report makes clear that the Guaranteed Maximum Price established through the two-stage tender process does not provide a contractual ceiling on cost and significant residual risks remain of further cost.

The NPHDB is continuing to engage with the Main Contractor to obtain an updated programme of works that is in line with its contractual commitments. Any delivery outside of the timelines agreed under the contract could potentially be a matter for dispute resolution and it is not possible at this stage to forecast the cost implications as the position continues to unfold. At this point it is still too early to fully assess the time or costs impact of the pandemic on the project.

The NPHDB has statutory responsibility for planning, designing, building and equipping the new children's hospital. There are Governance structures in place to oversee and monitor progress on the Children’s Hospital Project and Programme. These include the Children's Hospital Project and Programme Board, chaired by the Secretary General of the Department of Health, and the Children’s Hospital Project and Programme Steering Group, chaired by the Deputy Director General of the Health Service Executive. The Steering Group directs the overall programme of work within agreed parameters, and reports to the Children’s Hospital Project and Programme Board.