Health Minister unable to give completion date for Children’s Hospital

The completion date has been pushed back for the 18th time

The completion date for the controversial construction project has been pushed back for the 18th time.

The long-running saga dates back to 1993 and was most recently expected to be completed by the end of the month.

However, last month BAM confirmed that the schedule would not be met, stating that a revised completion date would be provided within two weeks.

Speaking to Sarah McInerney on Prime Time this week, Health Minister Carroll MacNeill did not give a new completion date.

"We do have a timeline, but is it going to be met?" the Health Minister admitted, "If you’ve experienced something 19 times, do you expect it to be different on the 20th?

"What I’m much more interested in is what day are we getting into the hot block? That’s the material date."

The Fine Gael TD went on to reiterate that there was still no completion date for the “hot block” that she could stand over.

"Possibly the beginning of May, but that was supposed to be the middle of March," she said, before laughing and adding: "I’ll tell you as soon as I get it."

When asked what she would say to the parents and grandparents waiting for over 20 years for the specialist hospital, the Health Minister claimed she was 'one of those parents'.

"I have slept in Temple Street, I have slept in Crumlin. I have been in all of the different parts, I am one of those parents, and I would have loved to have been here instead of Crumlin," she said.

"I’m the mum who wants to have this hospital open for her child. I’m a community member, I’m a TD who wants this hospital open for the children of my constituency.

"I have zero ego in this."

Pressed again for a date, the Health Minister said she was more focused on seeing BAM complete the project than on receiving timelines from them.

"We’ll open it when it’s safe, when it’s right," she stated, "I’m not going to open it at a standard that isn’t clinically appropriate, and I’m not going to open it if it’s not safe for the children to move.

"I think they’re pretty reasonable parameters," she concluded.