Vol. 539 No. 3
67 Mr. Higgins (Mayo) asked the Minister for Health and Children the number of projects in the National Development Plan for which his Department is responsible which are not to proceed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14534/01]
The capital programme for the health services under the national development plan, NDP, represents a major initiative by the Government to radically improve the infrastructure of our service. My Department has overall strategic responsibility for the NDP so as to develop the health service infrastructure in a co-ordinated and effective manner. However, the prioritisation and delivery of individual capital projects at local level is primarily a matter for the health boards.
A sum of £2 billion was provided at the launch of the plan for the health service nationally for the period 2000-2006. As 2000 was the first year of the NDP for the health services, transitional arrangements applied in relation to capital funding for health boards to ensure that existing commitments were met while allowing scope for various new approvals throughout the country. In relation to 2001-2006, capital funding was indicated to health boards for each of those years for various care programmes such as disability services, child care, acute hospitals, etc. The actual funding available each year to individual health boards will depend on a number of factors, including adjustments in respect of various issues such as inflation, changing service priorities, technological developments, new clinical practices, progress on the delivery of specific projects and market capacity in the construction industry.
Health boards have developed plans under the NDP for the years 2001-2006 in line with the indicative funding levels notified to them by my Department at the commencement of the plan. The health board plans are expected to evolve over the period of the plan in line with prevailing service, financial and operational circumstances. It is therefore not possible at this stage to project the progress on individual projects proposed under the NDP.
