Mr. Michael Layde:

My colleague, Mr. Aidan O'Connor, will deal with the radon issue.

On the building regulations and the legacy issues which have arisen, the former are forward looking and will, therefore, apply from now on. There are already significant powers available to building control authorities under the current legal framework. Ultimate responsibility lies with the developers and owners of buildings. In fairness to local authorities, it was through the inspection regime that many of the more serious difficulties were discovered. These difficulties are being addressed in many instances. The most extreme example of legacy issues relates to buildings which are unfinished. These issues are being systematically addressed in site resolution plans designed to bring such buildings up to the appropriate standard, both in terms of the building and the surrounding infrastructure. As stated, however, ultimate responsibility rests with developers and owners to ensure buildings are fit for purpose and in compliance with the existing regime. The new regime will allow for a much more robust framework of enforcement which will allow us to avoid a recurrence of such issues in the future.