Mr. Fred Barry:

I can inform the Deputy that the land has not been purchased. The land cannot be purchased until the road has been granted permission by An Bord Pleanála and this has not happened as yet.

On the tendering processes and work for unemployed people, the EU tendering processes and the national tendering processes are very limiting in what can be done. Along with other EU countries, we are not permitted to limit tendering to local companies or to limit employment solely to local people. Those are the operating rules.

We are already regularly challenged on our procurement procedures. If we were to proceed on those grounds, we would be stopped in our tracks very quickly on the basis that we were acting outside our authority.