The New Children’s Hospital: Ireland’s 2.5bn Euro Shame

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[@megaprojects9649]

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[@Joseph13163]

Please do the Dail bike shed not a megaproject but it did cost 335 000 euros for a basic bike shelter for 40 bikes

[@johnmoloney5296]

Shame?? Its a new hospital for children that is badly needed, no shame in that, the only problem is that a greedy builder keeps uping the price

[@yellads]

Same happened when Google and other multinationals built their EU HQ's in Dublin. Fancy office building were built but no one bothered to build any accommodation for the staff that would work there.

[@robot336]

I bet my left nut that this is the result of the Irish gov well known head long march into WOKENESS = make everything worse than it need's to be

[@hughboyle7251]

It was never about building the best hospital for children. All these projects are only about setting up a syphon of public funds to the private sector and round about to the politicians and their friends pockets.

[@dailydopacat]

i work in ireland with the irish govt and health service and its genuinely difficult to say this is surprising. they are the most unorganized, incompetant, and underqualified group of people i have ever witnessed.

[@Gerald-o1v]

Like I say to a lot of people -I'm part Irish- Live up to a standard not down to a stereotype

[@cormacmcquillan8359]

The most shameful scenario in the history of the state. not one government minister held responsible or any resignations. nobody held accountable. The government has also spent €336K for a bicycle shelter for 18 bikes for the parliament buildings. Could be another megaprojects video for your team 😂 Disgrace

[@gmc9226]

To be fair Cormac, I'd say the decades of helping the Catholic Church cover up sexual abuse and murder of children, baby homes, child labour, not to mention the Magdalene laundry's, and the willfull acceptance of bribes to help the stardust disaster coverup are all probably just a little bit more shameful

[@Valhalla-or8mx]

They will never be caught..they are past masters of fraud...

[@veterankamikaze3591]

@@gmc9226 Overseeing the New Plantation of Ireland

[@anthonydenn4345]

Exactly, the most expensive bike shelter in history 💪

[@Valhalla-or8mx]

I hope Connor McGregor gets elected as the PM of Ireland next year and drains the swap ..

[@tomgreen2737]

But yet the politicians here in Ireland will tell you they are not corrupt. Just today they announced there will be another delay.

[@RiposteBK]

And people will vote for them anyway... generations of people just voting for the party their family votes for, regardless of who's in charge or what they do

[@joshuaclaxton2565]

Or they'll find a way to blame the UK for their own failures. Don't you just love politicians?

[@cariocafavelado]

Keep Voting for the S0cialist useless and incompetents.

[@Vulf_Faolan]

@@RiposteBK I'm always depressed when I hear about the battle between the parties at the top. One loses a couple seats, the other gains a couple... Nothing changes.

[@maryrose4712]

@@joshuaclaxton2565 Or the "Far Right"!!!

[@DutchieUSA]

As a Dutch citizen, the moment I heard the development company BAM I got chills. There have been multiple collapses and unsafe government buildings, condemned buildings and endless delays because of BAM in the Netherlands.

[@shaneosullivan8546]

Hi from Ireland. I have heard of problems relating to BAM developed projects in the past but not looked too much into it. Can't wait for the future bullshit that's going to come to light here. Not in a good way though.

[@papi8659]

Thats really interesting - obviously BAM have previous form.

[@ChristineMckeown-v3h]

It's not what you know It's who you know world unfortunately

[@emilygooner9697]

Jesus now when it’s finally complete it’s going to fall down too 🤦🏻‍♀️ or is it cladding and will go up in flames, either way typical

[@tomh5094]

"The Dutch authorities' investigation into BAM International is centered on potential financial irregularities in some completed projects. The investigation, conducted by the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service and the Public Prosecutions Office, involved a raid on BAM’s offices in Gouda. Although BAM International has fully cooperated, the company has not disclosed specific details of the allegations, and no final outcomes have been publicly reported so far. BAM has since wound down its international operations due to a lack of positive prospects" "in incidents related to structural faults. One notable case was the collapse of a parking garage at Eindhoven Airport in 2017. Subcontractors had warned BAM about visible cracks two months before the collapse, but these were initially dismissed as aesthetic rather than structural issues."

[@testgio7]

There is another megaproject here in Ireland. They spend 300k euros to build a shed for bicycles. And the shed was not constructed correctly so it does not protect the bicycle from the rain.

[@cemu1065]

@@testgio7 Exactly. had the builders waited 5 minutes, they would've found out which way the rain, wind, snow blows. 🙄😞

[@ilovelimpfries]

Give me 10.000€ and I'll build you a fully enclosed bike shed in a week.

[@zurielsss]

But it protected the contractors and the bureaucrats 😊

[@39doddle]

Well said my friend 👍

[@schubi42]

we'll take 30 😂

[@aidanoleary636]

The biggest issue with this hospital is the site location. Without being experts, everyone knew from the outset that it was built in the wrong location. The stipulation was that it needed to be co-located with a full service adult hospital, so it was wedged into this existing site next to St James Hospital near the city centre. It will be impossible to access for staff and patients. The ideal site was about on the outskirts (10k away) in Blanchardstown, on the M50 ring road, and loads of available space for building. They would have needed to upgrade the adjacent hospital but in their infinite wisdom, thought this was not a good idea. It’s mind boggling to think of why this was not the logical choice, when the dog on the street knew it was. They could have built the Children’s hospital and 3 adult hospitals for what they have spent. Ireland is littered with mind boggling construction decisions, from the erection of pelican crossings to Children’s hospitals. It’s horrendous.

[@Mark.R_]

A relative of mine offered them a free site for the hospital just outside the M50 on the N2.

[@bernardmccabe463]

Exactly. St James is in a congested enough area already. I dread to think what is going to be like when the NCH opens. No new travel infrastructure is planned as far as I know.

[@driftjunk]

My first thought would be that what ever line of corrupt money swindling they had planned will only work if they do it this way.

[@alcoyne3333333333333]

​@@Mark.R_ was that Noel Smith ? I remember that .. he was going to build the hospital for the government for if I remember correctly 250 M cost price.

[@spacetweek]

It’s a good thing we didn’t let the dogs in the street choose the location in that case. You’re thinking in a 20th century way, we don’t want people to arrive by car. National facilities need to be centrally located beside public transport not next to a congested motorway.

[@martinfitzsimons5884]

From Ireland, with love, thank you for doing this Simon. Greatly appreciated

[@agent_meister477]

For all the difference it will make. Those fools in the Dail will still throw good money after bad into this monument to stupidity. Regards from Cork.

[@bazzakeegan2243]

Yes,its embarrassing....Irish politicians are amongst the most short sighted out there....

[@lanzecki]

It was always gonna be a big feck up. By the time they got around to it they were surprised, apparently that the costs had raised. Instead of selling the expensive land in Dublin and moving to a green field site outside Dublin they decided to build there. In Dublin.. To serve the entire country.. And They (Government) din't seem to think they were wrong. Zero accountability, zero consideration for the needs of the people.

[@porcupineinapettingzoo]

My sister has a construction company in the west of Ireland, every new build is held up by a local complaining. For example, an 8 new house development on a street with 4 or 5 derelict houses being held up by six people due to lack of parking when at least one of them, a relative, has no car. It shouldn't be possible to block construction for 2 years for €50, make it a grand or two which the person gets back if their complaints are upheld which they lose if their complaints are baseless. It's easy to blame politicians, construction companies when there's a lot of everyday people doing the blocking because to quote my relative... over her dead body will there be houses built across from her.

[@HealingBlight]

So much of Irelands problems comes down to housing, it doesn't matter how good the pay is if all you are doing working for your landlord.

[@lukemwill99]

And yet there's loads of empty office building in south Dublin. An entire building just gone up at Charlemont LUAS station and half of Central Park is stil empty despite being finished 13 years ago. All new housing is completely unaffordable for the majority of the population and those that own the estates reside in tax havens like Luxembourg. My 'landlord' to which my partner and I pay almost 2.5k EUR a month for a small one bed flat in super south Dublin is a company from there. It's a total disgrace.

[@richiehoyt8487]

​@@lukemwill99 And your 'Mom & Pop' type landlords - with very rare honourable exceptions - are weird and creepy, psychopathic, thieving scrooges who can barely write their own name, but have three sets of accounts per dwelling - one for the Dept. of Social & Family Affairs, one for the Inland Revenue, and then the third - the _real_ ones...

[@larzlarz1140]

Home ownership in Ireland is 66%. That is slightly higher than in a the UK or US.

[@dogstar8027]

@@larzlarz1140 The main problem in Ireland is not the level of home ownership, but that virtually no housing has been built since the financial collapse and what little has been built has been bought up wholesale by property companies for the rental market. With a rapidly growing population, due to immigration, there is a serious shortage of accommodation of all types. The country needs 250,000 housing units now to meet the existing demand. The problem is far beyond home ownership statistics in UK or US. Irish people who have good jobs here are leaving to live and work abroad because of the housing situation. This is 100% a politician made problem.

[@polreamonn]

@@dogstar8027 The are still some 100,000 empty houses across The South atm.

[@4KChillVibes.]

As an irishman i'm appalled at the sheer volume of waste in this country, before the planning of this giant waste of money the then government was offered a complety free brown field property which an irish building contractor would deliver a larger building for less than 280 million euros which may have ended up being 400 ish..which would also have saved the entire country that doesnt live in dublin having to drive through the city to use the hospital, the planning system in this country is a joke of giant proportions just like the project to build this stupid lump of a building.

[@richiehoyt8487]

"The planning system in this country is a joke of monumental proportions" -- starting with "Children have been dying for years, they're dying now, and they will continue to die for the next number of years - but thank Kerrist, the 'dozers are ready to go in"... NIMBYs×: "(Whingey voice) But it's too _hi~iigh!_ It don't _look nice!_ " Planning Authorities: "Oh! Why did no~one say? Well, that's it, lads - we don't care _how_ many hundreds of millions sunk costs! You're just going to have to drop everything and find another site for your hospital!" And thus, not a sod of earth turned for _another_ several years! This the country btw, that had to be taken to court by Europe to make them accept the €13 _billion_ in taxes that Apple were trying to give them, albeit with predictable ill~grace! (The final judgement, after a decade in the courts, came through the other day.) ×'NIMBY' - 'Not In My Back Yard'.

[@arthas640]

​@@richiehoyt8487what's with the × by the NIMBY?

[@cemu1065]

@@arthas640 GOBSHITE

[@richiehoyt8487]

@@arthas640 I was using it in place of an asterisk (**) You start messing around with them boys, next thing, if you're not careful, you end up with half your comment in BOLD!*

[@arthas640]

@@richiehoyt8487 I see. I noticed it at the beginning and then end and thought maybe it had some other meaning I was missing

[@liamlynch5863]

As an Irish citizen, the research done on the different issues raised in this video is impressive and accurate.

[@willie8976]

Bet u will still vote establishment

[@heudevil]

FFG forever!

[@Etcher]

@@willie8976 Who are you voting for? Some illiterate, unemployed mouth-breathing _Ireland is full_ gobshite by the sounds of it

[@Zohaib2211]

As a person who works in one of the current children hospitals in dublin, this new hospital is of no use, the current plan is to shift the two working children hospitals to the NCH and close the old ones, so in practicality they are not adding any new beds in the system, in fact the total number of beds in the NCH is even less than the current hospitals. Combined that with the location, parking and transport issues its going to be a disaster.

[@asb2106]

12 hour emergency wait time is abhorrent. 2 hours is too much in my opinion. I think they've forgotten what emergency means

[@finolaomurchu8217]

People have died in A & E waiting. You know elderly, and young or meek people.

[@schubi42]

twelve hours is fab on a sunny day. It can be days on a cloudy day.

[@philipmcdonagh1094]

We haven't seen the biggest crisis with this wait until the try to staff it. Where are they going to live tents.

[@sb8163]

Irish children with scoliosis are waiting years for vital surgery. Sixteen year old Aoife Johnson died waiting over 13 hours in Limerick hospital for antibiotics while her parents begged for help, the report redacted the names of the consultants. Children's minister Roderic O'Gorman used GDPR as an excuse to delete files he was sent on the abuse of children in state care. But the Irish govt are patting themselves on the back for bringing children from Gaza to Ireland for medical treatment, and providing rapid-build modular housing estates on state land for Ukrainians (they spent €1m a month on their PETS) People are very unhappy that the govt can spend billions on their policies that get international attention (plus over €335k on their bike shelter), but are a disaster on housing, health, services, etc. that impact people's lives. There are protests against the government, which the govt has blamed on 'far right racists' stoking division

[@musicilike69]

My parents are from Dub. I can remember going there in the 70's and without question it's been the worst poverty I've ever seen first hand. All the slums got knocked down but the corruption is just the same, just has less of a religious component it seems.

[@sb8163]

@@musicilike69 Dublin had the worst slums in Europe in the past, but poverty was widespread. My father grew up in a rural area with no electricity, no indoor plumbing, and walked miles to school in his bare feet as his family couldn't even afford a pair of shoes for their children. As did everyone else he knew. His brother started work in a coal mine at the age of 15. His father fought the Black & Tans My cousin remembers getting running water at home for the first time at the age of seven (he's now in his late forties). Now I have two sons in college, one in Galway, whose friend pays €600 a month for a room shared with two other lads. That's €1800 a month per ROOM. I don't know how many people share the bathroom and kitchen But, as we've recently discovered, it turns out that the Irish government CAN provide brand new rapid-build modular homes on state land for families in need - just not Irish families. They lecture the Irish people about how privileged they are to live in their own country - a country built up from poverty by our parents, and fought for by our grandparents. And now our children are lucky if they can find a bed to sleep in that they pay through the nose for, while our taxes pay for the brand new free house for a non-Irish family Anyone still voting for FF, FG, or the Greens and believing that the anger in working class communities is because of 'racism' must be living in an ivory tower They must have been too guilt-ridden when TD Catherine Murphy said the Irish had white privilege "throughout their oppression" to think that the Ukrainians (with their free brand-new houses, free healthcare, their €1m a month spent on pets, their trips back home for dental treatment because the waiting lists in Ireland were too long!) are no less white than the Irish families whose loved-ones died from hunger and who held wakes for their children emigrating on coffin ships because even if they didn't die on the way they would never see their home or families again

[@erickeane4560]

One item that was missed - every government minister/ member of parliament that has touched this project has only been promoted higher in politics. The more you fail, the more you rise in Irish politics.

[@johndoe-so2ef]

That's the same everywhere, politicians only fail upward.

[@ckm-mkc]

It's called the Peter Principle - you rise to your level of greatest incompetence.

[@damien5062]

huh maybe we should punish such a system... haha jk jk that would be illegal o.0

[@Nathan-vt1jz]

We have the same problem here in the US…😅

[@P13N5]

Fail upwards is the motto in the Dáil and in RTÈ.

[@c3h50n023]

and it was too expensive to install a sprinkler system in the hospital... they didn't plan to install a sprinkler system throughout a building that by its very nature would be occupied by sick children (Children not being known for their situational awareness at the best of times, adults are bad too). "The new National Children’s Hospital has lost its appeal against a requirement to install a sprinkler system throughout the €1 billion development. The National Paediatric Hospital Development Board (NPHDB) had argued that the existing fire safety design already exceeded current standards. The board argued that extending the sprinkler system to all areas of the hospital would add up to €2 million in extra costs."

[@MustardM00se]

I feel like the lives of a huge amount of children is worth more than 2m€

[@bernardmccabe463]

They also "forgot" to install toilets in the dermatology department which was a cause of a recent delay and redesign.

[@smalltime0]

I'd question if they exceeded the current standards. If the standard says that they should have a sprinkler system, and they could demonstrate that they can evacuate the building in 'X' time more reliably without one, and the other measures ensure they have that time - sure that's valid, but I am willing to bet the designed safety assumes everyone's able bodied

[@rorykeegan1895]

Sprinkler systems aren't a universal panacea and are not always appropriate, particularly in areas where widespread water damage would be the more serious concern. Horses for courses. There are plenty of ways of providing more than adequate fire fighting systems without resorting to the dumb bomb nuclear option, which is the sprinkler system. Popular though that option has become with politicians and public since Grenfell. Hospitals are very hi tech places these days, jam packed with very expensive machines and large battery systems not designed to be under water, or indeed anywhere near water in a fire. Sounds to me like they opted for a hybrid system in the design which accounted for that; which a bunch of outraged taxpayers and their lawyers just rode rough shod over. I hate to think about the outcry to come when a bin fire in a nurses office sets off the sprinkler system and does millions of euros in damage as a result. The biggest killer in projects like this is always the untimely client not understanding the consequences of their design changes and the contractor not explaining those consequences clearly enough. Changing the fire suppression system was insane in terms of the delivery and the budget, not to mention the morale of everyone on site. What else did they change once the project had commenced?

[@damenwhelan3236]

We don't need sprinklers. If they're not maintained they become a bio hazard...

[@Grafrey]

I live in Ireland and I don't know a single person who is happy with our health service. We have to wait a YEAR to see a consultant for example. Waiting lists are ridiculous.

[@jl91iii]

Yet election after election Fianna Fail and Fine Gael power home, helped by our lax media who are in co-hoots 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@ParrishStrongman]

And you pay for it, I live in Ireland too as a Brit I will say I miss the NHS for sure.

[@Joseph13163]

These opinion polls are rubbish

[@lukemwill99]

Or any service for that matter.

[@TookieMacSpookie]

Tell them your a Muslim or from Africa they see you that day.

[@willie2761]

The Govt will announce an enquiry, pack it with their lawyer chums on huge retainers, and in five years time they will say...nothing

[@philipmcdonagh1094]

Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't there an inquiry into an inquiry.

[@vincentdunne5129]

As a Irish man who lives in Dublin, can I congratulate you on your excellent research and reporting on this building farce. To think that this is going to cost more that the Burj Khalif and for what we are getting, beggars belief.

[@Hujhjgffw]

If they didn't include a sewage system and used slaves to build it like they did for the Burj Khalifa they could've saved a decent bit of cash

[@cathal341]

Simon & Team, thank you so much for covering this disaster of project, I really hope this helps get more international attention on it as the current Irish Government cares much more about their international image and listening to Brussels/Washington than about the standard of living for our citizens. It's the biggest infrastructure failings in the history of the state but it's sadly not the only one, we also currently have a equally disastrous Metro System that is suppose to have been being built for decades and several other problems with vital infrastructure such as Dublin Airport.

[@maryrose4712]

The Empire State Building was completed in 1Year & 45 days and that was during the Great Depression.

[@moogle68]

really? That's genuinely incredible that I've never heard of such a successful and ambitious build timeline for a building I've actually been to.

[@Danji_Coppersmoke]

One floor every four days. Still standing with style. Great respect.

[@pads-zr9ln]

Yeah but did they change the design multiple times during construction

[@papi8659]

Obviously its much easier to do these things during a depression with lots of cheap labour and lots of unemployed builders hanging around.

[@stockholmsyndrome411]

Built by the paddys

[@39doddle]

I'm Irish and can tell you this type of incompetence and corruption has been going on for generations. By the time it opens it will be out dated and not fit for purpose.

[@HowiaNow]

The effects of brown envelopes and racing tents

[@jmcgonnell]

This is simply depressing. What a shambles.

[@Darthfloon]

In 2022 there were reportedly more than 160,000 unoccupied homes in Ireland. There is not an issue with a lack of housing. There is a problem with widespread corruption and privatisation from a government, most of whom are landlords. Roughly 13 homes per homeless persons. See our recent bike shelter which was billed for over €300,000 which was no more than a lean to shelter with a capacity of about 18 bicycles.

[@matthewbarry376]

These consist primarily of Old husks that will require extremely extensive renovation, investment properties and luxury apartments. The bigger issue is the refusal of banks to give out loans at a reasonable rate on reasonable terms and the fact there are no laws against institutional investors and foreign individuals buying and owning property. Supply shortfalls are nonsense it's the extreme demand created by the parties I previously mentioned and the pent up demand from younger and middle aged generations of Irish people that is driving prices higher. Also an bord pleanala fuck them

[@cemu1065]

👏👏👏👏👏 👍👍 They (the government) are not saying a word about that, hoping the Irish people will eventually forget about it. FFS, even our teaboy can't find who signed off on it. But, can find a young chap waving an Irish flag in a crowd of thousands 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂. "JAYSUSSSSS"

[@johnrodgers2018]

Badly designed too, the bikes get wet

[@charles5553]

​@@cemu1065they know who signed off on it that just don't want us to know who 😂😂

[@TheContrarianMind]

Those 160,000 vacant homes in Ireland remain private property. If we want to make use of them, we must locate the owners and present them with an offer. The government has no right to infringe on private property, nor should private owners be held accountable for the government's failures. Probate lawyers can help identify the registered owners-some may have moved abroad, others may be unaware, and some may lack the funds to renovate. The responsibility for the housing and health crisis lies solely with the corrupt and incompetent government as you have correctly mentioned. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, have collectively held power for almost a 100 years and now are working together as one entity. Yup, The €335,000 bike shelter is a national disgrace, but unfortunately, I don't believe anything will change. We have no effective opposition party. This renders us effectively a dictatorship.

[@eoinokeeffe7014]

I love my country. But this is one of the big problems we have as a nation: Too many people are happy to wink at corruption instead of insisting that heads roll. There can be no doubt among thinking people that Bertie Ahern, for example, engaged in all kinds of dodgy deals that we should be furious about. Yet a lot people will still say they like him, even with this knowledge. The reaction is something like, "Yeah, he was a sly devil alright!" Instead of "We need to lock people like that up."

[@SergioMach7]

Dee Forbes is someone else who should have been sent to prison. Imagine any other country where the state broadcasters CEO squanders millions of taxpayers euro in backhanded payments hidden from officials. Then when Forbes was confronted with the evidence she hastily resigned, pulled out a sick note, and suddenly is unable to ever face even appearing in front of a committee about the money? Dee Forbes should be in prison. This should have warranted a riot.

[@Etcher]

Sadly "cute whoorism" is alive and well in Ireland; that hospital has lined the pockets of contractors, builders, suppliers and officials. It's an execrable waste of time and money. Nobody who works in the two children's' hospitals think it is in anyway going to alleviate their workload or serve the public any better when those two hospitals are amalgamated into this waste of space.

[@BryanSteacy]

Hilariously apt timing on dropping this as they just announced (on Friday night at 10pm too 🙄) that it's delayed until 2026. Absolutely disgraceful behaviour from my country's government. This will be studied years from now along with the Berlin Airport for examples of crazy overspend.

[@ailbeburns4564]

As am irish man this is wild see this. just today it was announced tat its delayed to 2026 opening thanks Simon for covering this😂😂😂😂

[@kevint5890]

Lots of Irish people will still vote Fine Gael so we deserve this!

[@bradwhite5884]

​@@kevint5890 Except for me, I hate those clowns, along with Feina Faul and Sein Faine too (butchered their names, but I don't care)

[@davdonoghue]

Dear god - had no idea it was that bad , well done Simon for highlighting this "project" as well as our incompetent politicians.

[@Crimethoughtfull]

Wow, and here I've been thinking New Zealand was bad in terms of hospital wait times, construction delays b/c of government consent procedures, and bad public transport--Ireland makes NZ look good! 😞

[@cemu1065]

The Irish Government makes Al Capone look like an Alter boy.

[@youtubeaccountt1]

Mate you have no idea the Irish goverment makes Stalin look like a symbol of democracy

[@malicant123]

Irish here. Until the day comes when civil servants suffer severe consequences for these mistakes, they will continue to happen. We need to see careers ended, pensions torn up and even criminal charges if the law has been broken.

[@piguntilprovencop]

If we didn't imprison the bankers for what they caused in 2008, we will definitely not go after civil servants. Depressing, I know.😢

[@Valhalla-or8mx]

This is how Health boards and politicians secure their retirement money...

[@JonnM]

There is zero accountability in the public service in Ireland. The Health Service Executive (HSE) is the epitome of incompetence. Inefficiency and lack of accountability. Patients are dying on the floors of public health hospitals and no one is being held accountable. It’s a national disgrace. Unfortunately it’s not just healthcare, it’s in all areas of the public sector.

[@darraghtate440]

Speaking as someone currently sitting about 2 km from the hospital, please let me say this: It is impossible to truly get across how inept the Irish government is at getting ANYTHING done. If a hospital for sick kids is this overdue and overbudget, you can maybe start to see why the Irish housing crisis is as bad as it is.

[@matthewgubbins8515]

Same here in UK mate. I wish our politicians weren't so crap

[@PRCOM]

Blame the Fools for voting for them

[@darraghtate440]

@@PRCOM They're all the same. Fianna Fail & Fine Gael are essentially identical, and Sinn Fein have never actually been tested running a government.

[@EireFirst2024]

Great at human trafficking against our will they are.

[@NicholasMulvaney]

Can't blame the voters when they don't have any options

[@jonnyfranks5879]

2.5bn for a hospital?? wtf

[@dylc5604]

Before the first bricks even been placed

[@Crimethoughtfull]

For that price I expect some Star Trek kinda shit in there...medical tricorder, an Emergency Medical Hologram, those things that you wave over a cut a few times and it just gets fixed by science magic--you know, that sort of thing.

[@FG-td4vs]

corruption, Ireland is a curupt shithole

[@c3h50n023]

we have a €300,000 government bike shed that doesn't keep the bikes dry. €28000 for each bike.

[@davosazizora4611]

That’s before it’s finished and equipped

[@boiful1]

I worked on this project nearly 9 years ago... It's a fucking shit show probably the most disorganised project anyone could work on what a fucking nightmare they also made a balls of some parts that were previously considered finished and had to be redone

[@a.j.haverkamp4023]

Image living next to this monstrosity, no more sunlight. Ireland isn’t very sunny, but living in the shadow of this building must be sickening. It seems so out of place, judging from this video. Edit: no parking garage? WTF I feel sorry for the neighborhood for all that traffic, but how can you expect everybody to get there by public transport or taxis?

[@jochenstacker7448]

Ireland tends to build large venues capable of holding thousands and thousands of people and never include any parking. The argument? Building any parking spaces would only encourage traffic, so by not providing them, the problem solves itself. No, this is not a joke, it is a conscious decision by planners to minimise the impact of large developments.

[@acash93]

Ireland is a joke. No parking for a paediatric hospital and a 12 hour emergency wait. How will parents and their children take the bus back home at 3am?

[@a.j.haverkamp4023]

@@jochenstacker7448 Sounds like our green politicians here in Amsterdam. Raise the price of parking and parking permits. Remove parking places (which immediately get filled up with old abandoned bikes). And expect that the people suddenly don’t need their cars anymore. They don’t work for the people, but against them. And somehow people still elect them……

[@tedcrilly46]

The alternative site (Blanchardstown Connolly) was touching/adjacent to a large motorway, on a large open green area, with a large suburban hospital already built there. Perfect for construction. And in a very large suburb, with plenty of mid-price housing. And nearby rail facilities. And potential for helicopter operations (which the chosen site wont be capable of). And the land would be way cheaper. With lower traffic density. But no.

[@dnte18218]

There are a thousand parking spaces in the basement...

[@garymcnamara7774]

Just this week a person was found dead on the grounds of university hospital Limerick . Only the second person in the last 12 months . Results of a centralised emergency department instead of regional departments . Fast rising population with lack of housing and lack of medical staff is a recipe for disaster. This country takes in the needy without resource to meet current needs ....

[@TookieMacSpookie]

Rotten rotten politicians...

[@panoramicLight]

Corruption corruption corruption. Disgusting.

[@murpho999]

Except it’s not corruption. Its incompetence. Big difference. Ireland is one of the least corrupt countries in the world.

[@rorykeegan1895]

More like incompetence right from the off. Nobody on the "client" side really understood what they were building when they looked at the plans. Seems they didn't understand the very expensive scale models either. So the contractor quotes on the design as specified, and the client keeps altering the basic design because they finally understand the flaws while the project is underway. Costs spiral, delivery dates slip and the crew building the thing lose heart because they know some dick will tell them to rip out what they did last week and start again, every sodding week.

[@panoramicLight]

@rorykeegan1895 on the micro yes. On the macro no.

[@PaulJakma]

@@rorykeegan1895 It's incompetence, in a corrupt way. There are dozens and dozens and dozens of highly qualified "golden circle" type people (engineers, solicitors, professors, ex civil servants, "business men" - we need their keen acument so much) sitting on boards and committees over-seeing this stuff, and being handsomely paid for it. And the longer this goes on, the more they get paid. Gravy train!

[@user-jj9eh9vf7u]

Not the main point, but why are modern buildings so unforgivingly ugly?

[@DavidJames.26]

I live in Ireland 🇮🇪 and it's absolutely disgraceful, especially in the 21st century 💯

[@seanlukecorroon]

Thanks for bringing this to international attention

[@L_U-K_E]

Yeah no corruption going on here at all, nothing to see people.

[@nogorman560]

VOTE THEM ALL OUT they can't even build a Children's Hospital

[@MrLeadb1]

BAM!....and the money is gone!

[@walsakaluk1584]

Those clinging to power have decided that the people of Ireland need a monument more than they need a children's hospital. When petty clerks rule the roost you get this.

[@dylc5604]

Finally someone said what we were all thinking. They have to build the thing now it's got worldwide exposure.

[@croninalan]

A national shame for something that would help the lives of families and children from all over the country

[@richardjones2811]

@@croninalan From all over the third world more like.

[@finolaomurchu8217]

My children were born in the 2000's and I knew the hospital would never be for them. My youngest will be 16 years tomorrow. 😂

[@Danji_Coppersmoke]

But you definitely paid for it... I hope your kids are doing well.

[@Clonmel86]

Wait until you hear about the bike shelter at government buildings it cost €336,000.00

[@finolaomurchu8217]

Yes a wall-less bike shed. Some may call it a bike stand, with pvc roof.

[@arthas640]

Sadly I've seen similar in the US. There was a judge who had a million dollar bathroom built for his office. I once had 2 Insane government jobs: 1. Where the school admin all got new $2000 executive chairs while teachers were buying kids supplies like pencils and scrap paper because the school wouldn't provide them 2. A different school district where a random closet had a $1500 light fixture in it and they spent tens of thousands fo dollars remodeling the closet because they disassembled the entire office and rebuilt it exactly as it was with new materials for literally no reason.

[@dubinatub1]

Local engineering company said they could do for 20k

[@Hujhjgffw]

They used funding for "active travel" to fix up the carpark. That 336k including tarring the carpark, installing footpaths and barriers, not just the bike shelter itself. It happens a lot here, councils get grants for bike lanes so that they can use some of the money to repair the road.

[@dubinatub1]

@@Hujhjgffw don't buy that

[@sirsammie6883]

Glad this is being brought to light

[@joeennis2571]

they talked about it for about 40 years before it started being built , some of the children from that time will be old age pensioners before its finished

[@Rydonattelo]

Something has went very wrong when a GP annual salary wouldn't be enough for you to get a mortgage in Dublin. How can that be possible? Something rotten is going on .

[@PaulJakma]

The "golden circle" in Ireland creaming off the money for themselves, by gravy trains (look how many committees of experts there are getting paid nicely to "oversee" the children's hospital) and by plain grift. Except they're taking it so far these days they might actually economically collapse the country.

[@buddieb74]

Yep we Irish love this kinda deal, we buy trains that wont fit our stations, printers that also don't fit where intended, build bike racks that cost the same as a house, so why build four hospitals when we could have one for the price of four?

[@Drummo-ef6kx]

So we have the most expensive hospital on the planet but I bet you didn’t know we also have one of the most expensive bike sheds on the planet! Yes that’s correct Our government spent €336,000 on an 18 stand bike shed!!!! our government is a complete shambles but what’s worse is that the people will vote these tools back into Office in the next election😢

[@neiltonks4627]

Anything to do with cyclists gets money thrown at it. It’s the same in the UK: we have miles and miles of cycle lanes built at huge cost, causing inconvenience to everyone, which are used by a handful of cycles each day.

[@PaulJakma]

It's just obvious obvious grift that. Politicians literally running away from questions on who approved it. Nearly all that money went into various people's pockets (and some maybe into party coffers via "donatons"), cause the shed itself cost no more than €50k, if even that. Plus they probably installed it the wrong way around! Open side facing towards the building might give some actual shelter!

[@joseph603]

This hospital is so badly needed and it’s an absolute disgrace that Irelands bureaucracy cannot just get on with it to get it done. This is now to the detriment of every child in Ireland and will impact the country for generations to come.

[@daniel-vn4ql]

the same company that built the hospital. also built a place for bikes. cost 335K. How many bikes does it hold. 18 bikes.

[@multiguy74]

Add this in with the mounting multi-billion euro proposed rail project.

[@sb8163]

There was also a SPHE schoolbook depicting a pitchfork-wielding, bacon-cabbage-and-spud munching, home-loving, pasty, 'Family A' who enjoyed traditional Irish culture and disliked "imported trash" on TV; and a cosmopolitan, globe-trotting, diverse 'Family B' who enjoyed volunteering with the Red Cross in Syria, and, interestingly, had a partially sighted member who "travelled to Baltimore in the US for specialist treatment. This was paid for by fundraising in our community and by the Irish-American group in Maryland". This is the lesson being learned in Irish schools

[@doithimaceabhard7457]

Do you feel it's an inaccurate message tho?

[@sb8163]

@@doithimaceabhard7457 are you serious? Do you feel if there was a family with a different background, for example a 'traditional' Muslim Family A that wore Muslim garb, ate halal food, etc. - that they would have been presented in that way?

[@sb8163]

@@doithimaceabhard7457 do you feel this is an accurate message: The Syrian leaders should get off their fkn holes and help their own citizens instead of relying on foreign volunteers The Irish government should get off their fkn arses and fund the medical care required by the disabled children of their own taxpayers instead of giving the "message" in schools to children that families can fundraise to pay for their medical treatment in their own "community" and rely on foreign charities Plus the message of this lesson: What effect did weaponised mass migration to Ireland during the Plantations have? Does the legacy of centuries of divisive identity politics on the island of Ireland still linger on today? How did the wealthy ruling class use Divide & Rule culture wars to keep the people too busy fighting among each other to unite against the political hierarchy? How did they scape-goat dissenters through shaming them as a vocal hate-fuelled minority faction of 'Deplorables' that lacked popular support? Why were there centuries of war, famine, insurgency, sectarian conflict and social division in Ireland, followed by generations of Irish peasants living in poverty, squalor, and destitution and reliant on international aid, charity, volunteers, etc., to barely subsist in their own country? When and how did this end and what role did the IRA and the Fenians play? What did Edmund Burke mean when he wrote that rioting by the neglected populace from any grievance real or imaginary, was perverted from its true nature into a conspiracy against the state, and prosecuted as such? Why did the UK government blame the civil unrest in Ireland in 1920 on the lack of emigration of young military-age men: "The principle cause of the trouble is that for five years years emigration has practically ceased. There are 100,000 or 200,000 young men here, of from 18 to 25 years of age, who normally would have left the country" "Then there is no hope of peace until these emigrations have taken place?" "No" - Lord French, 23 January 1920 (source: Military Rule in Ireland 1920, Erskine Childers) Did facilitating the emigration of military-age men from conflict zones play into the hands of the ruling regime, and why is the Irish diaspora so large?

[@sean_d]

That was a lot of fuss about nothing, a deliberately cartoonish portrayal that was obviously tongue-in-cheek. Our teenagers can take a joke. Lots of pearl-clutching from the permanently outraged, God help them if they ever read The Poor Mouth.

[@sb8163]

@@sean_d in that case why is my reply blocked when I try to suggest that you should make a similar cartoonish portrayal of a Muslim 'Family A'? As the mere suggestion of this enough to get a comment blocked, it seems to be a case of outrage and pearl-clutching for thee but not for me..

[@kevint5890]

Irish people who vote Fine Gael or Fianna Fail, THIS IS YOUR FAULT

[@Eritini.]

@@kevint5890 who do you want instead, Sinn Fein 😂😂

[@derekscanlan4641]

but... in the last general election (or maybe the one before), everyone tried to vote for other parties. The 2 of them just teamed up so they BOTH got back in! It's actually worse now because no one can dethrone them. With them happy to be in power together, Ireland has become a one party state

[@bradwhite5884]

​@@Eritini. No one wants those three anymore, all are traitors, the three F's (Effs) I'd call them, lol

[@Eritini.]

@@derekscanlan4641 no one wants to be in a coalition with Sinn Fein, (the only big party not in government rn) but parties such as the Greens and most independents want to go in with Fianna Faill and Fine Gael. So it is up to Sinn Fein to find a party that they haven't pissed off yet 😂

[@patrickoconnor6979]

It's time for a new Republic.We have been overun by these infiltraitors ,check their history in this country.Go back to the 1800s and see where they arrived here.

[@ActuallyDoubleGuitars]

As an Irish person I'm very happy this video was made, the more people around the world who hear about it the more embarrassing it isfor the government and our government truly cares what they look like onthe Global stage. So this might actually make something good come out of it.

[@imthelastone]

Must be getitng built by the lads that built the bike shelter

[@elespecia5604]

Lets do an documentary about any Swedish hospital in construction. Lets start with Karolinska! 😆

[@DerekIcelord]

Star Citizen IRL: Hospital edition.

[@FranzBieberkopf]

Corruption in Ireland became big time with Haughey (late 1970s). Impunity and lack of accountability seems to go back a long way, possibly since independence in the 1920s-how many bishops, priests or nuns did time after the industrial levels of child abuse emerged? How many politicians went down after the mass corruption under Haughey was exposed?

[@MandaClaudiuMCM]

Hmm - so from 650 million it's up to 2.5 billions and delayed for 4 years almost and still not ready yet. Irish people be ready to get that metro by 2070 with a price of 100 billions €. Also GTA VII will be out before the metro and hospital.

[@rogenjosh]

BAM should never get another public contract ever again. Absolute scumbags

[@extramild1]

Speaking as an Irishman they way I see the Childrens Hospital is that Ireland has spunked billions on worse things like bailing out the banks, pensions, the Church etc etc so why can't we spunk a few billions on a Childrens hospital? In a hundred years time will anyone remember how much the Hospital cost if we can treat thousands of sick kids?

[@Joseph13163]

Treat thousands of sick dublin kids though and thats great,but where it is situated it will greatly disadvantage the rest of the children of ireland because they can't get there on time,its supposed to be a national childrens hospital.

[@Allthewayhome781]

I suspect a hundred years from now, the hospital will be in a state of disrepair and be completely unsuitable for the needs of the time....

[@extramild1]

@@Joseph13163 Well better a Childrens Hospital in the wrong place then no Childrens Hospital?

[@finolaomurchu8217]

Yes spunked isn't a nice word. But it is the only appropriate one.

[@extramild1]

@@Allthewayhome781 Time will tell I guess but any hosptial is better then no hospital?

[@nanamarques]

Blame the government, yet continue to vote for the same political parties. It's mind-boggling!

[@finolaomurchu8217]

And I'm nearly sure I read somewhere the consultants rooms are not accessible by wheelchair. So the children must be as fit as a fiddle, and backwards flip into their consultation. *yes at least 2 of every six consultants room s in each department is not wheelchair accessible. The conditions are cramped and like the consultants previous/older hospitals 🙄

[@nigelflood7074]

Yep , we the irish people keep voting in the same Muppets from FG and FF

[@thegaelicgladiator665]

Every time Fianna failure and Fianna gowl win the votes, I grow more disappointed in the Irish people

[@ciantisdall]

Turkeys voting for Christmas like clockwork every four years

[@shaneosullivan8546]

To be fair Sinn Fein would have spent all that money on border polls and you wouldn't even have the bike shed.

[@nigelflood7074]

@@shaneosullivan8546 that's the same mindset why with keep on getting FF/FG and insert minor/scapegoat party here coalition.

[@shaneosullivan8546]

@@nigelflood7074 They are all as bad. I'd vote for SF but they have no other plans except for getting the six counties back. Aontu will never be big enough to make a difference and the Greens....

[@elanless-rs7nr]

This is your best video in years.

[@MichaelDoran23]

As an Irish person, thats a hard pill to swallow. We would talk about this around the lunch table at work and say the money spent on this project could have built 5 hospitals nationally.

[@irielive7834]

Well covered, whoever wrote the script. While I never had a problem with child health care (despite my son practically needing a season ticket due to asthma and injuries) and things being dealt with well and in a timely fashion, I live in Dublin, so had 2 options for pediactric care. A lot of ppl have to travel for that care, be it A&E or outpatient. I think some bad choices were made to both centralise the service, and in the most expensive place they possibly could have picked. My Mrs was having cancer treatment and had to go to the adjacent hospital site for regular scans which gave me time to have a walk around and look at the progress, and it was still pretty much a building site. It'll obviously be amazing when it's finished, and world class, but it's been a disaster in terms of planning and delivery. And will it serve the whole country? Probably not. Who wants to drive to Dublin from Donegal or Kerry for an appointment? Nobody.

[@caitlinbailey4642]

Medical, Housing, Corruption and crippling red tape when trying to build - the key reasons I'm leaving Ireland in 3 months.

[@oh2887]

It is sad that you have to leave to progress in life, my own adult children left for the same reasons. Wishing you prosperity and happiness 🌻

[@shaneosullivan8546]

It's a vanity project at this stage. Everyone told the government that it was the wrong place but they didn't listen. However if you want an idea for a future video wait for the Dublin metro link. They estimate 10 billion but we all know it's gonna be way way more.

[@sullivan912]

Of course it will be way more. You have to line the pockets of the government's cronies somehow.

[@pioshelby7611]

All the Apple money and a lot more with it probably......

[@ianwynne5483]

Most expensive building… so far. There are a few more projects in the pipeline and the country has €8bn extra in tax regularly and the Apple windfall due it has the money to waste unlike cost overruns in other countries which would cause more of an outcry.

[@lilinkpod]

wait till the Bike shed episode

[@KRAZEEIZATION]

Don’t worry, the money hasn’t been wasted. It’s gone into the right pockets!

[@namae6637]

Like I’ve been saying for years, we need to abolish the planning office and the public should be able to bring government ministers to task for their failures. I’m ashamed of our government, between the hospital, the lack of affordable housing, and the €336,000 bike shed, the nation is in shambles.

[@AdamJones381]

Thanks for making this video

[@anthonyC214]

There should be No Cost Overruns. Companies must be warned if they under quote to get the order, they will bear the cost Also the engineers, architects, builders should not change the specifications once the request for quotation is sent to the bidders.

[@mamba101]

This is really it, they picked a low bid, didn’t add any protection for additional costs and now shrug their shoulders.

[@Success4u247]

Our media tells us , it’s because our population is growing, but they will never say it’s been added to .

[@jaalin8622]

Ahhh why don't you tell us what you really mean.

[@Ubique2927]

@@jaalin8622 They can’t. They would be called race Est. And the thought police would be battering the front door down.

[@carlosvargasbatman]

Why does it feel like the world is experiencing social decay in almost every aspect? Healthcare is bad seemingly everywhere.

[@Ubique2927]

If any government money is used to train medical staff, that medical staff must be legally bound to work in Ireland for 5 to 10 years or until the student debt is paid.

[@banksy215]

This is the most idiotic comment I have seen here so far. Do you think the government pays the college/universities for our medical staff?

[@papi8659]

Same problem in the UK , UK doctors off to Oz as soon as they graduate

[@Ubique2927]

@@banksy215 Yes, they do in the form of loans or free tuition. In Australia newly qualified doctors are made to work in rural locations before they can emigrate or work in private practice. It works. So your comment comes out of ignorance.

[@tcbobb1613]

@@banksy215 It happens in the US, but with teachers. to get your students loans paid off you have go teach at bad and at poor schools. I think for maybe 5 years. Also, there is another way there are schools that will pay for your schooling to your their master's degree in special education. But you have to work for them for 3 years.

[@kerrytraynor2642]

It is impossible to become a consultant in Ireland without training overseas in cutting edge facilities

[@boristhedespot3473]

makes you proud to be irish . in any other country there would have been a revelution

[@The_Mup]

This country is a joke. We don't even have a motorway linking the 2nd and 3rd largest cities in the country. And they're only about 100km away from eachother. They're linked by a tiny road which is a deathtrap.

[@Un_Pour_Tous]

Thats just everyday driving in Dallas.

[@pads-zr9ln]

Pretty sure they just think Dublin is the only place in Ireland

[@paulkielty3800]

⁠@@pads-zr9lnThere’s a Dublin in Texas .

[@The_Mup]

@@Un_Pour_Tous I doubt that. Texas doesn't have roads like Ireland. 1 lane each way. Ditches and 10 foot tall hedgerows line each side of the road. If you want to stop there's nowhere to pull over, your only choice is to just to come to a stop in the middle of the lane, or wait until the next town or village. And the road is constantly winding left and right, you can't see what's going to be around the next corner, you can see maybe 100m ahead if you're lucky. The road is so narrow that if two trucks meet they have to scrape along the hedgerows. Overtaking in most sections of the road is suicide. Oh and the speed limit is 100kmh. And god help ya if you're travelling 99kmh or less. And there's massive wheel destroying potholes you need to dodge too. You're essentially driving into a 2 car wide green tunnel any time you leave a town or village in Ireland. Now imagine all that and the road is carrying ALL of the traffic between two cities. Texas country roads are probably double or triple the size of even the biggest Irish country roads. With plenty of room to pull over wherever you want I bet.

[@Kitiwake]

What happened here? Initially, the senior public civil servant in charge of the project DIDN'T retain a firm of quantity surveyors to advise them from the very outset. BAM, (Netherlands based) the main contractor, being very experienced in civil construction, just left the Irish government department make change, after change, after uncontrolled change to the project AFTER they had agreed the initial contract price. Arrogance and naivety in extreme on behalf of the Irish.

[@anon8853]

Simon Harris' popularity is rocketing. Go figure Ireland.

[@Ninomax72]

Denmark is building two mega hospitals, and the process is similar to what Ireland is going through, with a bloated budget, deadlines keep being pushed back, construction failures and features of the hospitals being canceled from the projects. The Danish healthcare system is also under pressure, and need the new hospitals. Oh, there also seem to be no accountability .. like at all.

[@chriscars3578]

There’s been to many back handing this government is a utter disgrace to the Irish people for allowing this

[@mamba101]

Regarding doctors leaving Ireland. I have an unpopular opinion; There should be high fees, like 10s of thousands for critical degrees like medicine that can be reduced for every year you work as a doctor in Ireland. My reasoning is that 3rd level education is essentially free, these people shouldn’t be able to use that education benefit just to go elsewhere without contributing to Ireland.

[@MrDunkycraig]

I worked for ten years in the nhs if you did training for degree level certs you were expected to stay for at least 5yrs after qualifying. It should be the same on the medical side and at least ten years to pay back

[@nanashi5587]

You should do a special on the Honolulu skyline where 10.8 miles of raised track costs 10 billion+ so far and it hasn't even made it to the 2 projected stops that would make it work, Ala moana shopping center and University of Hawaii Manoa. Fun fact is for each rider that pays the $3 fair it costs Hawaii taxpayers $72 to offset the operational costs.

[@padraigdoran3082]

Yea health care in ireland what's that. My wife is waten a year for a date for an opp just to find out what's wrong with 2 very Young kids and she's crippled in pain most days its a joke

[@johnfrank94]

This needs a follow up episode. As a nation we now proudly have the most expensive bike shed in the world.

[@almonza]

BAM should be barred from any future contracts.....but unfortunately that will never happen. A disgrace of a company.

[@AB-lq1zd]

The Irish Government is powerless to prevent the contractor, BAM, from tendering or winning public contacts due to EU procurement rules.

[@anotherother]

Check BAM about the new Sociall Sciences building for Sheffield University

[@oisinmtom]

Nah BAM are generally good at building within deadlines and budgets but this project was and still is a massive clusterfuck that finger pointing 1 crowd alone is not helpful its a collective "You lot fucked this up" instead of "They fucked it up".

[@johnmcdonnell81]

Passing on the buck to BAM at the end of the day is bollox. The finger of blame is with the government. They couldn't manage a piss up in a brewery, even with Guinness's a stones throw away.

[@mcarpenter2917]

@@AB-lq1zd I don't think EU procurement rules require you pick the lowest bid, just that you allow everyone to bid. So why are you trying to to blame the EU competition regulations?

[@verduoh]

The recommended house building level of 50,000 was made by experts back in 2015. Before the housing crash, the recommended level was about 20,000 houses per year. In 2015 they made the estimate that there would need to be an additional 50,000 houses per year up to 2050. Now you need about 100,000 houses per year. Of course, the housing market has been opened up to corporations and oversees investors, so the average house price is quickly growing outside the range of affordability by most of the next two generations. On top of that, salaries are absolutely atrocious, with a needed minimum wage of probably about €30-35k per annum, with actuals being less than half that

[@philrabe910]

OOOh! OOH! I know what to do!! Take the interest payments on that €2.5 bn and build three simple shoe box shaped hospitals. A&E on the ground floor, rooms up above, you know, like a normal hospital. Hell, throw in a sky bridge connecting them... China puts one up in about a month, figure a year for Ireland.

[@Pooneil1984]

The Texas Medical Center in Houston is one of the finest care facilities in the world. Texas Children's Hospital is the major pediatric hospital there. Rather than build a mega project hospital building, TCH and most others, build smaller community hospitals. Moving the care close to families provides far more access compared to having the families come into a single major building. Mega hospitals concentrate all the problems of hospital care in one area without really offering any benefit in health outcomes because most medical needs don't require exceptional care. But they doo require parents to be there and still take care of there other children.