Heads must roll af ter hospital delay, say MSPs
BOSSES in charge of Scotland’s new children’s hospital should be sacked over a ‘shambolic’ catalogue of ‘blunders’, Nicola Sturgeon was told yesterday.
MSPs demanded that ‘heads should roll’ over massive cost overruns and lengthy delays to the opening date.
The First Minister said she ‘shares the anger’ of patients, parents and staff over the ‘unacceptable’ situation – but refused to state whether anyone was at risk of losing their job over the scandal.
The Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh had been due to start treating patients in July but problems with the ventilation system meant this was pushed back.
It was the latest in a string of delays to the facility, the plans for which were approved in 2012. It had been meant to open in autumn 2017, which was then put off until last year – then this year.
It has also emerged that the cost to the taxpayer for the hospital is likely to almost triple – from £150million to £416.2million.
At First Minister’s Questions yesterday, Scottish Tory interim leader Jackson Carlaw condemned the Scottish Government over the ‘absolute shambles’.
He also accused Health Secretary Jeane Freeman of doing ‘too little, too late’, after she announced on Wednesday that the hospital would not be functional until at least autumn of next year.
Mr Carlaw – who claimed more than 300,000 children have missed out on emergency care at the site due to delays – said: ‘Blunders, cost overruns – and yet it’s only yesterday that the Scottish Government decides to appoint a troubleshooter to sort this mess out.
‘It seems four successive health ministers chose either not to know or simply failed to ask about the full extent of the problems faced until way, way too late.’
He added: ‘This is a saga from which nobody emerges well – not the health board, not the contractor and certainly not this Government. And it’s altogether sadly too predictable. The country thinks – for once – heads should roll.’
Miss Sturgeon replied: ‘To say the Health Secretary and I are angry at this situation would be an understatement. That anger is shared by patients and staff.’
She added: ‘The focus of the Government is on putting this right. We will not allow the hospital to open until we are satisfied about patient safety.’
Miss Sturgeon said it ‘would have been wrong to allow that hospital to open before assurances about patient safety could have been given’, adding: ‘I deeply regret that the hospital will be opening late.’
Miss Freeman said additional work to make the hospital safe was estimated at £16million.
Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard reiterated his party’s calls for a public inquiry, saying: ‘Does the First Minister not understand just how angry people are about this?
‘Audit Scotland is saying there needs to be a review of whole project contracting to help with preventative and reactive measures. We need full public transparency to restore trust.
‘What will it take for the First Minister to finally listen and deliver a full public inquiry into this abject failure of governance and government?’
Miss Sturgeon said: ‘I share the anger that patients and staff feel about the thoroughly unacceptable situation.
‘The health board’s responsibility was to ensure the hospital was built to the right specification. It has not discharged that responsibility and questions must still be asked.’
‘Focus is on putting this right’