Health minister hits out at Bam for latest National Children's Hospital delay

“The State demands that Bam honours its commitments without further delay," Jennifer Carroll MacNeill’s spokesperson said.

A revised completion date is not expected for another three weeks for the long-delayed National Children's Hospital. The timeline has been delayed 18 times. Picture: Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin.

The Government has accused construction firm Bam of seeking to “blur the timelines” for completion of the National Children’s Hospital, as a further delay was confirmed.

Health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill criticised Bam as a revised completion date is now not expected for another three weeks.

The delay was confirmed by the National Paediatric Hospital Development Baord (NPHDB), saying it had been informed of the delay by Bam on Tuesday.

A spokesperson for Ms Carroll MacNeill said a recent meeting she had with parent company Royal Bam led to an agreement to increase resources and ensure the work met “clinical and technical standards required for patient care”.

The spokesperson added that Bam said it would provide clarity on early access for Children's Health Ireland (CHI).

“Despite these commitments, the minister has yet to receive a satisfactory response,” the spokesperson said.

“Instead of confirming when the promised resourcing uplift will be delivered, Bam has attempted to blur the timelines for completion - proposing partial delivery by April 30 without a resource-loaded plan or a credible path to finish the job.

“This contrasts sharply with Bam Ireland and Royal Bam’s public statements that they are ‘unwaveringly committed’ to achieving substantial completion and that ‘all necessary resources’ are being deployed. These claims are not reflected on the ground, work completion rates, nor in any verifiable information provided to the minister."

The spokesperson said that there has been “fluctuating” staff resources on the site, which Bam has denied, saying there are between 850 and 900 staff on site per day.

“The State demands that Bam honours its commitments and deploy all necessary resources without further delay and meet required standards,” Ms Carroll MacNeill’s spokesperson said.

“Responsibility for delivering this project sits squarely with Bam Ireland and the State will not reduce the pressure or dilute that accountability."

In a statement, a BAM spokesperson said it is “not accurate or constructive to state that BAM has continuously missed completion dates”, adding that dates are missed due to design changes.

This has been denied by the NPHDB, which told the Health Committee there has been “no material change” to the hospital’s design.