Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

An issue that arises continually in the context of Government bodies which appear before the committee is that of overspend of taxpayers' money. The money we are talking about today is effectively money down the drain. Mr. Purcell said the project is a product of the time we are in. Equally, €4 million of taxpayers' money forgone is a product of a time when issues such as this arose owing to a lack of due diligence. Of the €4.3 million spend, €2.5 million was for consultancy and professional fees. How did that happen? Mr. Purcell might elaborate on the spend between 2006 and 2010 of €1.9 million on consultancy fees and €425,000 on professional fees and, in 2011, €123,000 and €41,000, respectively.