Hospital board cuts philanthropy funds target

THE board tasked with developing the new national children’s hospital has slashed by almost 50% the amount it is hoping to raise in charitable donations towards the estimated €650 million cost of the project.

In a sign of the times, an original target of €110m raised through philanthropy has been revised downwards to €60m. However the board is hopeful that this can be clawed back through a series of financial strategies such as paying an annual unitary charge on equipment rather than buying it and an annual unitary charge on energy services.

CEO of the development board, Eilish Hardiman, said they are also hoping to cut the cost of the project in an increasingly competitive construction market.

The board hopes to raise another €90m through commercial sources such as car parking, (€40m at an hourly rate of €2.20), retail space, consultant rooms, a hospital school and research and education facilities.

However €400m for the project is dependent on it getting government approval in September when a review of spending throughout government departments is completed. The HSE is expected to contribute €50m.

Speaking at a press briefing yesterday to mark the formal submission of a planning application to An Bord Pleanála, Ms Hardiman said the board was confident that the business case supporting the hospital “is extremely robust and presents very credible justification for the investment”.

The project is expected to generate 1,500 construction jobs at the its height. An oral hearing is expected at the end of the year, a final planning decision is expected by next May and completion of the project is forecast for 2016.

Ms Hardiman confirmed that the board had acted on some of the criticisms levelled at it by its former chair John Gallagher, who resigned in March.

Mr Gallagher had written to Health Minister James Reilly saying he believed the development board did not have the relevant expertise for such a crucial and large scale project and that the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) should have oversight.

He also believed there was a crucial need to set up an operational board, sooner, rather than later, to oversee the complex merger of three children’s hospitals and to take over the day-to-day running of the completed facility. Ms Hardiman said this was being worked on, as well as extending the engagement of the NDFA.

Asked if the merger of the three children’s hospitals — Crumlin, Tallaght and Temple St — would lead to job losses, Ms Hardiman admitted that while the hospital will have a staff of 2,700, there would be some streamlining.

“At the moment there are three CEOs, three finance officers — so there are posts that will move to one. So there will be change and we’re starting that process now so that people will have, over the next five years, an opportunity to train, upskill, plan and start aligning themselves to this new process.”

The board is confident traffic and access issues can be addressed: there will be two entrances to the hospital instead of one: from Eccles St and from North Circular Road. On-street parking on lower Eccles St will be removed to create four lanes and improve traffic flow.