Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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137. To ask the Minister for Health the progress which has been made to date in identifying a site for the new elective hospital in Cork under the Sláintecare Implementation Strategy and Action Plan 2021-2023; if consideration will be given to the site at St. Stephen’s Hospital, Sarsfield Court, Glanmire; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45571/21]

Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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177. To ask the Minister for Health the status of the proposed elective hospital in County Cork. [50812/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 137 and 177 together.

The development of elective hospital facilities in Dublin, Cork and Galway is in line with the Health Service Capacity Review, the Programme for Government, the Sláintecare Implementation Strategy & Action Plan 2021-2023 and was most recently referenced in the National Development Plan.

The Elective Hospitals Oversight Group, under the joint governance of the HSE, Department of Health and Sláintecare, is guiding the development of the elective hospitals, following the process outlined in the Public Spending Code (PSC).

A Strategic Assessment Report, as defined in the PSC, has been completed and was approved in February 2021 setting out the rationale for investment, the alignment of the programme with strategic requirements of Government, some initial options, and the governance of the programme.

The next stage, a Preliminary Business Case (PBC) has been completed and is currently undergoing internal evaluation in my Department. If approved internally, the preliminary business case will be submitted to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform for further review. If all Public Spending Code requirements are met, it is expected that a Memo for Government seeking approval-in-principle to proceed to the next stage of the Spending Code would be brought.

As part of the process, the Oversight Group made a public call for site submissions. As the deliberative process is ongoing the details of sites submitted or under consideration following that call are not being identified.