New hospital may also lead to closure of Zammit Clapp

The opening of Mater Dei Hospital on July 1, 2007 meant not only that all the phases of the hospital would open at the same time, but the sites of St Luke's and Boffa Hospitals would be free for other use immediately and one could possibly also eliminate Zammit Clapp Hospital or use it for other purposes, Health Minister Louis Deguara told parliament yesterday.

Speaking during the debate on the hospital, Dr Deguara observed that the government was being accused of being incompetent and inefficient because, it was claimed, that over the years, different cost and completion date projections were made, and that (contractor) Skanska had been allowed to do what it wished.

The truth was that the project was originally to have been a Lm51 million specialised hospital of 480 beds. The Labour government changed the whole concept and decided this would be a 1,000-bed general hospital whose construction was at the time to cost Lm100 million.

In the year 2000 the government reached an agreement with Skanska to build the first phase of the hospital for Lm83 million. That excluded the Lm20 million spent up to then, as well as the costs to furnish and equip the hospital and the other phases.

When in 2003 he had said hospital would cost Lm200 million, that had included the first phase of the equipment. It was true that the Outpatients' Department was due to open in 2003. But the opposition had raised a storm, saying it made no sense not to open the Outpatients' Department without the rest of the hospital, and this was an electoral gimmick. The government decided not to open the Outpatients' Department, and won the election anyway.

As costs rose in 2003, the Prime Minister this summer led high level talks which led to a final agreed price tag of Lm139 million even though Skanska had demanded Lm161 million. A firm opening date of July 1, 2007 had been set. This not only meant that all the phases of the hospital would open at the same time, but the sites of St Luke's and Boffa Hospitals would be free for other use immediately. One could possibly also eliminate Zammit Clapp Hospital or use it for other purposes.

The government had claimed that the price tag would be Lm151 million since Lm43 million had been allocated for the project this year. But this Lm43 million would not be spent.

Referring to opposition comments on the CT scan, Dr Deguara said the medical suppliers had pointed out that the scan ordered two years ago was now obsolete and they suggested new and much modern equipment. The government opted for the new equipment, even though it cost Lm250,000 more. Did the opposition expect the government to opt for old equipment?

The opposition in its criticism frequently compared the Mater Dei Hospital costs with the building of a new hospital in the UK (in Norwich). But the two were very different, with the Maltese hospital having far more facilities and comforts.

What was unfortunate, Dr Deguara said, was the opposition still based its policies on calculators, rather than the people's needs. The people needed a modern hospital and they would get it.

Nationalist MP Mario Galea said the hospital's concept was born out of the PN's vision of how it wanted the country's health system to develop.

The MLP had made the hospital a political football and had at one time indicated it was not needed. Then it criticised the government for delays and, now that a completion date had been established, it had filed a no confidence in motion instead of working with the government for the hospital to be completed for the benefit of the people.

The people, Mr Galea said, were the real winners of the talks held this summer with Skanska since it was a hospital completed in all its stages which would open on July 1, 2007 even though some phases - such as the Institute for Health Services - were originally to have been completed in 2010 and 2012. The government was managing to do more with less, as Dr Sant used to say.

The hospital was a direct investment to be enjoyed by generations but there were still major challenges ahead, including installation of IT and medical equipment, agreement on working practices and implementation of the migration plan.

The Labour opposition should stop making the hospital a political football, because it was shooting own goals.

Education Minister Louis Galea (who was the minister responsible when the hospital was conceived) said it made no sense for the opposition to move a no confidence motion after having negotiated a deal to benefit the people.

How could the government be accused of a moral failure when it was building a modern hospital for the service of the people, with the best facilities and the best medical care?

Was it political failure that the government had solved a problem the opposition had been criticising it about for a long time?

Dr Sant had forgotten the MLP's responsibility in opposition and in government, Dr Galea said.

The decision to build the new hospital stemmed from the dire straits which hospital services had been left in by previous Labour governments.

Dr Galea said the opposition should shoulder responsibility for the way it had hindered the project, not just when it said it would demolish the building in 1996, but also more recently when it made allegations at the time of crucial talks on costs and completion dates. Those allegations had attempted to cast a shadow on the Maltese negotiating team and also complicated the dealings of sub-contractors.

The opposition should also shoulder responsibility for the way it refused to contribute to the project, despite having been invited to.

It was not true that spending on the new hospital was made at the detriment of other hospitals., Everybody knew the investment made in Boffa Hospital, St Luke's and especially in St Vincent de Paul Home.

The new hospital would be a centre of excellence in the Mediterranean from which the Maltese people would benefit most but which could also benefit the economy.

Parliamentary secretary Tonio Fenech said the fact that the government had held the high level talks with Skanska proved how wrong the opposition was to claim that the administration was ignoring costs.

Mr Fenech said the opposition had been hoping it would open the hospital but the government was to be its spoilsport.

Going over the recent talks held with Skanska, Mr Fenech said the contractor had wanted the projected final cost to be over Lm125 million, along with design and management fees of Lm16 million, and there were Lm23 million worth of claims by subcontractors.

The government had insisted it would pay its dues according to justified costs and a number of studies on cost variations were therefore made.

The government had insisted on two main objectives - that the sum agreed would be binding and final and that the contract would be converted into a lump sum one, placing a bigger burden on the contractor. Skanska resisted this to the end.

The issue of penalties had also been critical to the agreement, since even though Skanska was ready to bind itself with a date, it was not willing to have the burden of fines added to a lump sum contract.

Mr Fenech said with reference to opposition remarks last week, that the impact of the hospital's costs on the national debt was covered in the convergence plan submitted to the EU.

He said that by last year, Lm108.5 million had been paid to Skanska, but Lm15 million were part of the old contract which related to the then San Raffaele Hospital.

This year they were paid another Lm14.8 million.

The opposition, Mr Fenech concluded, should withdraw the motion because the people were getting a quality hospital at a reasonable price.