Mr. Robert Watt:

Obviously, there are issues for us about how large-scale projects are managed and how we determine the cost of projects. When we say something is going to cost X, what is the basis for it? My view, which I have set out in the note, is that a cost indicated for something only has meaning when the specifications for the project are set out in full detail and the project has been tendered for competitively in the marketplace. Many estimates before it are general in nature, particularly when it comes to once-off projects.

When it comes to the overall management of budgets, I am happy to defend the management of the public finances in the past few years. When I was appointed to this role, the fiscal deficit was 15%, the banking system was bust, our international reputation was in tatters and we could not raise money on the financial markets. The rate of unemployment is now 5%; we have a balanced budget; the yields on ten-year money are 100 basis points and so forth. I am happy, therefore, to defend the role of the Department and my colleagues in the Department of Finance in managing the public finances.

To respond on this issue, the figure is €100 million for 2019. In the context of this project, clearly the overruns are very significant, at 40%, 50% and 60%, depending on which element of the budget one is discussing. The figure of €100 million has to be seen in the context of a capital budget for 2019 that is being increased by €1.5 billion and an overall capital budget of €8 billion.

If I use words like "not material", people out there will spin it as if I said that it is not significant. It is significant but in the overall scheme of things, in the context of the size of the Irish State, it is a manageable amount of money.

I would make a general point about the capital plan of which Deputies are aware, although it may not have received enough publicity. The capital plan, by its nature, is an iterative plan. There is a figure of €116 billion set out there and a whole variety of projects will be funded within that. How these projects are funded and the timeframe for projects, as the Deputy will know, changes. One school will be ready before another one, there will be delays with one school so another school is prioritised and so on. The same applies with primary care centres, roads projects and so on. It is an iterative process involving many different actors and it will evolve over time. Hopefully, if the economy continues to grow and prosper, we will have the resources to deliver all of the commitments set out in the plan.