Mr. Michael Nolan:

Yes, incorporating Adare, which is the second big bottleneck of interest to people travelling to Kerry after Macroom. We are currently finalising the preliminary design and junction strategy for that scheme with a view to finalising the business case and presenting it to the Departments of Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform in the coming months. That will happen in the new year. Good progress is being made on that. It is part of the trans-European network for transport, TENT-T, core network linking national roads infrastructure to tier one ports. It has a higher priority in terms of schemes. The Cork to Ringaskiddy scheme also has a priority in linking tier one ports to rail and national road infrastructure. We were committed to that scheme. We will go to An Bord Peanála whenever we get the business case approved and we will get that process moving. That scheme is progressing; it is not a suspended scheme.

Senator Kieran O'Donnell asked about the possible routes and phasing of the M20 project. I do not want to predetermine the outcomes or any works that could be done by the local authorities on that. It is probably too early to say what options we would be looking at. Once we get the preferred option it is only at that point we can start to see how we can break down the preferred option into logical phases or stages.