Mr. Peter Walsh:

I might have a greater sensitivity towards the Ardee bypass given the way matters developed a couple of years ago. Issues were raised relating to the junction treatment from a very old design that had been through a planning process. We looked into it with Louth County Council, which concluded there was some validity in the issues raised by public representatives, as I acknowledge. That has been addressed, but a judicial review in respect of the screening for appropriate assessment is under way. Until such time as that has been cleared, the project cannot progress. The Deputy might recall that in the 2018 national development plan, NDP, green boxes placed a significant emphasis on some projects. The Ardee bypass was one of them and we have not forgotten about it. I emphasise we do appreciate this project achieved a level of political commitment some time ago, so we are not shying away from it.