The new national children’s hospital (NCH) is behind schedule and there have been suggestions that it may not open until 2024. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has been updated on delays to the project and has also heard that contractor claims for additional costs have hit about €300 million. The NCH has been beset with delays – some due to the Covid-19 pandemic – and there has been controversy over the construction costs which are set to top €1.4 billion. The original contracted target for the completion of the construction of the main hospital on the St James’s complex was August 2022. Mr Gunning said expenditure on the design and build of the hospital was €199,622,000 as of December 2019.

Source: The Irish Times February 09, 2021 12:51 UTC