6. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the way in which he plans to address delays in delivering capital projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59855/25]

Sentiment score: 0.01

Will the Minister outline some of his plans to address the significant delays in delivering capital projects in the country?

Sentiment score: 0.20

They say every day is a learning day. Recently, I was back in University Hospital Limerick with other politicians looking at a new ward system, a new 96-bed block, a five-storey building. Angela Coll of the Ennis hospital committee was recently in the Minister's office, where the three of us had a good discussion. When I spoke to clinicians that day, they were delighted with this five-storey building and the 96-bed block. However, they made the point that another one is needed and probably even three. I made the point that we should build up and instead of going to five stories, go to ten or 12 storeys. I wrongly believed that there was some planning barrier to this. They told me it was because of the €200 million spending cap. That is just ludicrous because it becomes more costly to go back and build a new one and another one. I take some hope and solace from the fact that the Minister has not finalised his plans yet. When it comes to healthcare, particularly in the mid-west region where there is a healthcare apartheid, I appeal to the Minister to raise the cap so that when we are building a new block, we go higher, we go bigger and we build as many wards with as many beds as we need, not just as many as we can afford to do at that particular time.

Sentiment score: -0.05

The whole system is very impractical. When you want to build a new 96-bed block, it is not just foundations you are building; you are digging down, tanking out a whole basement floor and then going up five or six storeys. The upper floor must be load-bearing, so it can take more units and wards if required. All the services, including sewerage, water and electricity services, are then introduced but then you have to stop because the ceiling is reached. That is totally impractical. It does not meet patient needs and is not achieving the value we should obtain from public expenditure. One has to go all the way through the planning process again and build another block. From public healthcare and public spending points of view, we need to deal with this. I spoke to an official in the Department recently and he told me that back in the recessionary years, gateways were introduced. It was a way of slowing down projects without killing them off. Let us take out the gateways for all the public projects. There should be only three or four stages from conception and planning to funding and, eventually, building. We do not need additional gateways involving analysing and re-analysing. What these inevitably do is raise the cost, and that is the last thing we want. I thank the Minister for his engagement. I have faith in him. He is going to make proposals in the coming weeks but they need to be practical ones that address this matter.

Sentiment score: 0.02