Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I want to get this right because part of my job is to make sure that everybody is treated fairly. What TII has said is that from its perspective, it is not changing and I accept that. The problem, which Deputy Fitzpatrick has put his finger on and about which I am also concerned, is that if a new Government is elected, if there is an economic crisis or if the money is not available in the future, it might not happen. That is the problem. In other words, this is a leap in the dark. We do not know for sure that it will happen but we know that if the council was ready to go to tender now and did so, the project could start immediately. That is the point.