Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

They are not ad hoc, they are serious issues. As Deputy Cassells, I spent a long time at local council and we repeatedly asked for that. There was often one preferred company or group. It is a small country so I will not name names.

It was the same with valuations. I do not recall any in-house valuation in my time, but I will revert on this matter. I understood that there was a preferred external bidder that we kept using. These are issues of accountability.

I wish to discuss the astronomical figures for the tribunal of inquiry and the remediation of dumps or landfill sites, to use the correct language. The Tribunal to Inquire into Certain Planning Matters and Payments has cost €116 million so far. Money is still due, though, so it looks like the total figure will be €159 million. The tribunal stated that the majority of public officials performed their functions with the utmost integrity. I wish to place that positive comment on the record first, as I am moving on to a more damning part. I will ask the witnesses for the figures. It is clear from the inquiry's fifth and final report that, during the period in question, corruption in Irish political life was "both endemic and systemic". This is a damning finding, notwithstanding the qualification about the integrity of most staff, but what was the cost of finding that?