Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

That is correct. However, I have heard from elected members of the local authority at the time that an instruction was given that it was to be done via PPP. If not, the money would be not forthcoming. I accept that is hearsay but that is what I was told. I would appreciate if Ms Tallon would investigate this particular case and come back to the committee with a concrete rationale as to why, in this dead heat, preference was given to a private approach rather than through the local authority. I would appreciate it if she came back to the committee with details and not generalisations about a general sense of risk. I am led to believe by people close to this case that it was a policy bias on the part of the Department and there was a certain level of, if not coercion, certainly strong encouragement that PPP would be the preferred route. I am also told there was a suggestion that if it did not go that way then the funding would not be forthcoming. If that were true, it would be a most serious situation. I am asking Ms Tallon to go back and investigate that matter to the very best of her abilities and give the committee some answers to it.