Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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728. To ask the Minister for Health if he has received the business case in respect of the proposed new national maternity hospital; if the external assurance process for major capital projects has commenced and or concluded; the consultant who undertook the assurance process; and the fees paid for same. [50061/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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A pre-tender final business case for the relocation of the National Maternity Hospital (NMH) to Elm Park has been submitted to the Department of Health for review at Gate 2 of the Public Spending Code (PSC). The business case has been subject to internal review and the External Assurance Process (EAP) (introduced by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (D/PER) in late 2021 for projects over €100m) is underway.

The independent scrutiny processes for major capital projects at Decision Gates 1 and 2 of the PSC- the introduction of the External Assurance Process and review by the Major Projects Advisory Group- have been established to ensure appropriate project preparation, to further strengthen project management, and ultimately improve project outcomes.

For the External Assurance Process, D/PER established a single lot, multi-supplier framework from which funding Departments can source the independent reviewers to conduct the reviews. A Supplementary Request for Tenders from this established framework to conduct the Decision Gate 2 EAP review on the business case documentation for the relocation of the NMH was circulated. Following a tender evaluation process, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) was engaged by the Department of Health, as it was determined that it submitted the most economically advantageous tender to perform the EAP review.

The EAP for the NMH relocation is well advanced and is expected to conclude in the coming weeks. As the contract is yet to be concluded no fees have yet been paid.

Work is ongoing to update the business case documentation in line with external review recommendations so that an updated business case can be submitted to the Major Projects Advisory Group. Pending favourable review under the Public Spending Code requirements, a Memorandum for Government will then be brought forward to progress the programme for the NMH. If approval in principle is granted by Government, the project can move to deployment of a tendering strategy.