The cost of the new National Children’s Hospital has been described as ‘mindboggling’ by the leader of Sinn Féin.
It comes as Health Minister Stephen Donnelly informed a Cabinet meeting earlier today that the new estimated cost of the project is €2.2bn.
Speaking in the Dáil today, Deputy Mary Lou McDonald said the project is now four years overdue and €1.5bn over budget.
“You promised Taoiseach, that short of an asteroid hitting the planet, this hospital would be built and complete by 2020,” she said.
“Well Taoiseach, it’s now 2024 and the hospital has gone from a €700m project from when you made those comments to at least €2.2bn euros.
“The only asteroid to hit us is the mind-boggling financial cost to the taxpayer.”
The Dáil heard no more funding will be allocated to complete the project.
Rising costs
On The Hard Shoulder today, Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe admitted the hospital “has taken longer to build than we would have anticipated”.
“The reason the costs have gone up is well documented in various reports,” he said.
“The cost itself when the project was made public did not resemble what the cost began to be for the project as some changes were made to the delivery of the project.
“We’ve tried to learn from all of those lessons for other mega projects that we are delivering, but that’s why the cost has gone up.”
Opening date
Minister Donohoe said the priority now is opening the hospital.
“We need it to provide care for sick children in Ireland,” he said.
“This is a matter that is continuing to be the subject of intense work by the board of the National Children’s Hospital and the main contractor.
“The contractor has indicated the deadline and the timing that it would be ready for commissioning by October and be open next year.”
Last year an Oireachtas committee heard just 27 rooms have been completed out of a target of 3,000.
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Main image: Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald speaking in the Dáil ahead of the election of Leo Varadkar as Taoiseach. Picture by: Oireachtas screenshot
