Mr. Fred Barry:

No, not at that level. While I do not have details with me, as far as I am aware, the Northern Ireland Roads Service has already set out what work it will do in the next few years.

On Newlands Cross and the Arklow-Rathnew section of the N11, as many members will be aware, the National Roads Authority set out to upgrade Newlands Cross some years ago under a design and build contract. We were about to submit a call for tenders when the first of many funding cuts was announced and we were unable to proceed with the project on that basis. We have since tendered the project as a public-private partnership. This is the only means of having the work done as the NRA does not have sufficient funds to complete the project. Public-private partnerships worked very well until a couple of years ago in the sense that it was possible to raise funding and bring the relevant projects to fruition. However, as funding for the State became more difficult, so too did funding for public-private partnerships. Many obstacles and difficulties have arisen and while I do not propose to discuss them in detail, we are in the last stages of the competition. Most of the issues that arose in respect of the European Investment Bank and the availability of funding from the National Pensions Reserve Fund to underpin some payment streams have been resolved. We are now in what is known as the financial close period on the public-private partnership. The documents are being finalised and exchanged between the PPP company and its lenders and subcontractors. This phase will probably run for another two or three months and we are highly optimistic at this stage that the contract will be signed during the first quarter of next year.

Of some relevance to this matter was the signing in the past week of a public-private partnership agreement for a schools bundle. This is relevant to our arrangements for Newlands Cross because the same PPP company and lenders are involved. In this case, however, it is the NRA rather than the Department of Education and Skills that is involved on the State side. I am confident the Newlands Cross project will also be brought to closure in the near future.

The oral hearing for the Dunkettle roundabout started today. As the matter is before An Bord Pleanála, I do not wish to say much more on the issue, other than that we hope An Bord Pleanála will see its way to approve it.