Committee of Public Accounts to examine of 2020 Financial Statements of National Paediatric Hospital Development Board

The meeting at 9.30am in Committee Room 3 of Leinster House will be joined by the Comptroller and Auditor General, Mr. Seamus McCarthy, and will hear from:

• National Paediatric Hospital Board – David Gunning, Chief Officer; Phelim Devine, Project Director; Jim Farragher, Finance Manager; and Emma Curtis, Medical Director.
• Department of Health – Derek Tierney, Assistant Secretary of Health Infrastructure.
• Health Service Executive (HSE) – Martin McKeith, Assistant Lead Director, Children’s Hospital Project and Programme.

During the afternoon session, beginning at 1.30pm, the Committee will consider correspondence and other business of the Committee.

Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy Brian Stanley said: “The National Paediatric Hospital Development Board is responsible for the delivery of the new children’s hospital under construction on the St James’s Hospital campus in Dublin. The project includes two new paediatric outpatients and urgent care centres at Connolly and Tallaght hospitals, which opened in July 2019 and November 2021 respectively.

“The overall budgeted cost of the project has risen from an estimated €800m in 2014, to €983m in 2017, to €1.4bn as of December 2019. In recent appearances before this Committee both the Department of Health and the NPHDB have stated that the approved budget for the capital project remains at €1.4bn, but the Department has conceded that it would be a reasonable assumption that costs would exceed the current budget. The budgeted cost for equipping the new children’s hospital is €300m, bringing the combined budgeted cost of the project to over €1.7bn.

“Key issues the Committee would like to examine include expenditure on the project in the Board’s accounts, how much inflation is adding to the cost of the project, and the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on the project in terms of added costs and further delays. The Committee may also seek an update on the ongoing disputes and legal cases involving the Board and the main contractor, and the costs of this and other litigation.

“There remains considerable public concern about the rising costs, disputes and delays associated with the new National Children’s Hospital, the largest and most expensive infrastructure project in the history of the State, and we still do not know the estimated final cost of the hospital, or the latest timelines for its completion. The Committee looks forward to engaging with the Board, the Department and the HSE on this critical project.”

The meeting in Committee Room 3 can be viewed live on Oireachtas TV.

PAC is a standing committee of Dáil Éireann which focuses on ensuring public services are run efficiently and achieve value for money. Further information on the role and remit of the Committee can be found here.

Committee proceedings can also be viewed on the Houses of the Oireachtas Smartphone App, available for Apple and Android devices.