John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)

I have a few questions. I wish to turn to the issue of vacancy within stock owned by the State under the trust of the OPW, such as the premises that we are talking about for the national science museum. A total of 5,000 sq. m is currently occupied. The C and AG in his chapter highlighted huge levels of unused and underused spaces. In relation to the space - the 5,000 sq. m - I did a quick calculation. I am surprised the OPW has not done this calculation on the potential value of that space. I did a quick search. Market values for rental in the city centre is about €600 a year per square metre. When that is multiplied by 5,000, that is about €3 million a year. Over 12 years, that is about €36 million in potential revenue if it was to be leased out commercially. While I am not arguing for that - it is a cultural centre - it is stark that a piece of property owned by the State in a city centre location is left vacant over that time. At the same time, the OPW is purchasing other buildings in the city centre. I just want to ask about----