The Government decided five years ago to locate the new national children's hospital in the grounds of the Mater Hospital in Dublin's north inner city, it was claimed today.
Fine Gael Senator Brian Hayes said the decision to move paediatric treatments to the Mater was made in 2002, and a letter to the then minister of health Micheál Martin from the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in September of that year, is evidence of this.
In the letter, obtained by Mr Hayes, Mr Ahern refers to the "intention" to "move Temple St onto the Mater Campus and to provide a state-of-the-art children's hospital for North Dublin, and indeed the country..."
Mr Hayes said the letter "suggests that the fears of political interference in relation to the selection process for the new national children's hospital were grounded in reality".
"In light of this revelation it is absolutely imperative that the call made this morning by the Fine Gael leader, Enda Kenny, that a full independent review take place in respect of the selection process be adopted immediately."
Minister for Health Mary Harney ruled out an independent review claiming: "The people that advised on the location of the hospital were architects, engineers, the OPW and experts from Trinity College. They recommended the site. I didn't, the HSE didn't.
"I want to get away from reviews. I do not believe it is in anyone's interest to delay and have more reviews. This hospital was never going to be located on a greenfield site. It needed to be co-located with an adult teaching hospital."
The issue is further confused when one considers comments made by Mr Ahern yesterday. Speaking in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Mr Ahern said he had had certain misgivings about the selection of the Mater site.
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