St Pier asks about comms breakdown over PEH costs

Rule 14 questions have been submitted by Gavin St Pier probing who knew what, and when, about an increase in the estimated cost of phase two of the redevelopment from £120m. to £150m.

Health & Social Care has said that some staff no longer employed by the States knew of the 25% increase in February 2023, but concealed it from more senior officials until October 2023. HSC president Al Brouard has said that he and his committee were not told until just before Christmas and then did not tell members of the senior committee, Policy & Resources, until towards the end of February this year.

‘The timelines do not make sense to me,’ said Deputy St Pier.

‘If HSC was advised at the end of December, why was P&R not advised until the end of February? I think it most unlikely that senior HSC officials, having discovered the problem and advised their own committee, would then not have immediately advised their colleagues in the treasury [who report to P&R].

‘So the questions, once again, are designed to drive out who knew what and when.’

Deputy St Pier, now a member of HSC, has submitted his questions to P&R president Lyndon Trott, who has 15 days to reply under the States’ rules of procedure.

The soaring estimated costs were revealed by the Guernsey Press in March. The claims of concealment were shared with the States Assembly the following week.

Since then, Deputy Brouard and his senior officials been investigating the breakdown in communication, but he told a Scrutiny hearing on Thursday that he had been left none the wiser.

During the period when the information was kept secret, the States Assembly was debating its capital programme for the next few years. Deputies voted to approve funding for phase two of the hospital redevelopment ignorant that the estimated cost had gone up by £30m.

‘If HSC staff did not advise treasury officials in December, why not?’ said Deputy St Pier.

‘If they did, why was that information not passed on to P&R? And was the newly-elected P&R Committee flying blind in the January debate on the Government Work Plan without key information that its staff were holding which was of relevance to the committee and the States debate?’

Phase two of the modernisation of the PEH was meant to start this year and take four years to complete. But HSC admitted at the Scrutiny hearing that they now have no clear idea about when building would start and when the new facilities would open. If the committee fails to get the estimated costs back to around £120m., it will need to take the project to the Assembly again, and would face a fresh vote on whether to go ahead.