John Hogan:

On the projects - so the Senator can understand the process we undertook in this regard - in the autumn of last year we were asked at short notice to compile a list of projects or potential projects that could feed into an overall list at European level. The approach was that the Secretaries General of the Departments of Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform wrote to the relevant Departments asking for their suggestions in this regard. The project list was chosen from that but, to be frank, the Senator will note our understanding is the exercise was also conducted by the other 27 member states across the Union in a similar way. From the lists and the production of the publication from the European Commission on the 2,000 projects on the overall list, it is clear that no particular status or guaranteed funding arises from the presence of a particular project on the list. Ultimately, from both the European and national perspectives, a cost-benefit analysis must be done to ascertain whether the approach and the particular project merit any funding. Ultimately, if there is private sector involvement, the participants must themselves be sure that the expectation of returns is there. I do not think anyone wishes to be building highways to nowhere or white elephants. That is not what this particular process is about. We have a list that has been put together at short notice across all the member states. It may well be that this list will evolve over time. Certainly, from what we see, it will be rationalised and is something that will be perceived as the end of the beginning of the process, to describe it that way, and ultimately, it will be revisited with a review as to what is a potentially viable and sustainable project being funded from the available resources.