Duncan Smith (Dublin Fingal, Labour) | Oireachtas source

My next question is for Mr. Parlon. I wish to follow on from what Deputy McGuinness said about the extra costs for building a house or apartment. I know that sites can range from small or medium to big, but they are not necessarily the most complex of building projects. Mr. Parlon mentioned an increase in costs of between 5% and 10%.

With regard to more complex sites, such as the national children's hospital, how does Mr. Parlon estimate costs might shift on projects of that size and complexity? It has been well-documented that the cost of that project has increased from €400 million to €1.7 billion. A higher figure of €2.4 billion has been suggested. There is great concern about the cost of this project. Would those kinds of percentages apply in this case? Would they increase exponentially?