Belfast’s new maternity hospital could face further delay of 28 months, MLAs hear

The opening of Belfast’s new maternity hospital is facing a potential further delay of 28 months, Health Minister Mike Nesbitt has told MLAs.

However, Mr Nesbitt also said that there was no guarantee that remediation works planned by the Belfast Trust at the cost of millions of pounds at the site would solve the issue of bacteria in the building’s water system.

It was disclosed last year that the hospital’s opening would be significantly delayed after high levels of pseudomonas aeruginosa (PSA) were found.

The hospital, which was already several years late and over budget, had been expected to open this year after the trust took possession of the new building last March.

Mr Nesbitt told the Northern Ireland Assembly that there is “nothing good to say except it is a magnificent facility that is not in use”.

Providing an update, the minister said the Belfast Trust has recently completed a multidisciplinary review of the options for remediation works required to address the water safety issues at the site.

He said the trust had accepted one of three options from its review.

He said he and his officials are reviewing the document “to try to satisfy myself that everything possible is being undertaken by the trust to allow the maternity facility to become operational as soon as possible while ensuring patient safety”.

The Health Committee was told last week that the trust faced three options to fix the water system, including ongoing testing of individual water taps, installing a checking system for high-risk areas and pulling out the entire water system.

Alliance Party MLA Danny Donnelly said the hospital was already 10 years behind schedule.

He said: “I would like to ask the minister about the price tag and if he knows when mothers will be able to have their babies in the Royal Maternity Hospital?”

Mr Nesbitt said recommendations made by the health trust had not been endorsed by him.

He added: “There were three options and I know the trust are going for option B.

“That appears to have a timeline, I am sorry to say this, of 28 months.

“That is another two and a bit years and several million pounds.

“I have met with the relevant official, I have not accepted this.

“I can’t gild this lily, I can’t soften this, none of the three options can be guaranteed to solve the problem, none of them.”

The minister said he had asked an external expert to look at the trust report.

He said: “I want an external view on whether it really should take 28 months.

“I also want to know whether there are parts of the hospital we can start using while we are fixing the water, because the area of real danger is the neonatal unit.

“I also feel I need to better understand from those who were against option B why that is the case so I am far from finished on this.

“But there is nothing good to say except it is a magnificent facility that is not in use.”

DUP MLA Diane Dodds said: “I must say I think everyone in the chamber shares your frustration, 28 months and we already 15 months since the handover of that building.”

Sinn Fein MLA Linda Dillon asked if the additional cost would be borne by the public purse or is there an ability to get that money back from the contractor.

Mr Nesbitt said: “The trust are still trying to figure out exactly what has gone wrong with the pipework. We know there was pseudomonas bacteria in the pipework and that has been the main issue.

“I understand since then some valves which have seals are perhaps defective and there is now a question about where that responsibility lies.”

SDLP MLA Colin McGrath said: “We cannot ignore the human impact of this delay.

“Patients deserve clarity, compassion and a system that works for them, not one that ties itself in knots over paperwork and planning.

“I will continue to push for answers, accountability, and above all, urgency from both the department and the trust.

“This building was meant to be a beacon of progress for maternity care in Northern Ireland, instead it has become yet another symbol of dysfunction and delay.”