Noel Harrington (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. O'Rourke for his presentation. As Deputy Ellis stated, his CV is extremely impressive.

I welcome the merger of the NRA and the RPA. Getting this merger over the line is, however, going to present a hugely significant challenge, particularly in the context of staff, management and the engineering cohort of both organisations. When the merger has been completed, does Mr. O'Rourke anticipate that conflicts may arise in the context of how the NRA traditionally delivers projects? If such conflicts do arise, how might they be resolved?

Mr. O'Rourke indicated that the existing staff expertise is very important and must be maintained. I submit that in the coming years the challenges to be faced will, in the context of the type of expertise that will be required, be much different to those which obtained during the past 15 years. In the latter period, what was being done revolved around land acquisitions and building new roads. In the future, the emphasis will be on maintaining the new roads that have been built. In the context of rail procurement, the focus will probably be on upgrading existing lines rather than constructing new ones. Does Mr. O'Rourke envisage that many of the existing staff will be moved on and that new people will be brought in to deal with these challenges? What does he believe will happen in the context of expertise, particularly in a changing environment, where the priorities will be completely different to those which obtained during the past 20 years?