Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Let us cut to the chase and what I believe will be helpful in this case. It looks like a remarkable coincidence that €23 million was precisely what the Irish Greyhound Board required. That was what the parent Department, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, wanted for that site. It is a remarkable coincidence. We have no evidence yet, but I want the committee to write to seek a copy of all communications, emails and correspondence between the Valuation Office and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in respect of what price would be acceptable and whether the Department had an indicative price that it was looking for. That will be instructive. The Department of Education and Skills wrote the cheque but the person selling the site – the person who wanted €23 million – was the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. We need the full communications trail between the Valuation Office and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to see what toing and froing happened in respect of that price. That request is to go to both organisations.