Marie Louise O'Donnell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am not from Cork, which puts me at a disadvantage today and I know there are colleagues here who know more about this. I am going on what I have read and have heard and I am not an engineer, so I have to bow to the witnesses' greater judgment. My knowledge of the OPW down through the years is that it has been extraordinary and excellent and has made a distinctive and distinguished contribution to Ireland and its preservation. I start from that premise and nothing that I read here makes me think otherwise. That might be my own innocence but, on first reading, it does not make me think otherwise. When we talk about disruption, one has to consider Dublin during the last three years of the Luas works. There is nothing like the disruption from the flooding of people's houses. It is the greatest disruption of all time.

I thank Mr. Hegarty for his presentation. Will he tell me about his voluntary group? Where did it originate? Did he say that the vast majority of the people in the city knew nothing about the Lower Lee flood relief scheme? What did he mean by that? Who did he survey? Who is he representing? I am sure he is representing people, but who exactly is he representing? Where does he come from, what is the background to what he is doing and what does he intend to do if his perspectives are not met? Where does he intend to bring his argument or beliefs on how it should be done? Where does he want to continue given the impasse? There is obviously a genuine impasse from his point of view, but where does he want to see this going?