A report by the auditor general which found that a €274m contract at St Vincent de Paul Home broke the law is being analysed but there were no doubts about the benefits of the project, the Ministry for the Elderly said on Sunday.

The report found massive shortcomings in the contract to build and operate residential blocks and a kitchen at the home, with the audit office saying that procurement regulations had been breached and the deal could potentially be deemed invalid.  

The ministry said in a statement it was analysing the report but it had to be told that, through the project, the country had four new blocks with 504 beds to give the elderly the best service possible. This was in a society that was getting older with waiting lists for people to enter homes reaching record levels.

The contract, which covers a 15-year period, covered the completion and furnishing of the blocks and also included its management and operations complete with the provision of the necessary human resources. 

The contract also covered the building of a kitchen with state of the art equipment and the provision of three meals a day for all residents at the home, the ministry said.

The newly-built blocks, the ministry said, will become government property at the end of the contract. The project, it said, was completed on time and in a relatively short period with all wards starting to be used in July 2020.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the complex was also crucial fo isolate different sections of the hospital into centres for isolation, quarantine and recovery.