Mr. Kieran Mulvey:

I have been in the GPO many times over the years. The Deputy is right. I hope I did not give a misleading impression. It is the side streets around the GPO that are, unfortunately, areas of antisocial activity. I think we have struggled for some time with O'Connell Street and the fact that buildings have been left abandoned. Companies have come in to try to purchase the building. I have heard stories that, for one reason or another, they have not had the best engagement with the city council or whatever else, or there have been protests about the use of a building and everything else. Some of the buildings have gone to rack and ruin. One does not want to put anybody out of business but the GPO is not the best place to have gambling establishments or drinking engagements around it. Is that what we want? When you go to other capital cities, they do not have the same element around the areas they wish to promote as their first places. Anybody coming from the airport passes through O'Connell Street to get to the southside of the city. It is not the best site to be going through if you are looking out the window and things are happening. The council has done great work with the pavements, the central landscape and everything else. It is a great thoroughfare and has a vibrancy with the bus services and the Luas crossing it, and in other ways. We must preserve, protect, support and encourage the other business entities in O'Connell Street, which are doing a decent day's business.