Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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I am in the convention centre and have to leave to be in the Chamber for Oral Questions shortly. I have ten minutes, so I will ask all my questions in one go and have plenty of time for the answers. I am watching the monitor at the same time and if I have to leave, it will not be that I am being rude but I must go to the Dáil.

The first issue I want to mention is performance monitoring and the extent to which the system is working adequately and is sufficiently incisive to identify trends that may have a negative impact on our economy, our financial independence, or whatever the case may be. For example, alternatives in housing provision have gradually emerged in the past few weeks. This has a direct impact on the State's finances because housing is a strategic element of our taxation system. If we do not have affordable housing, we must pay people more to pay their mortgages and so on.

Are the witnesses satisfied with the extent to which information available to the Department on an ongoing basis to alert them to changes that might have a positive or negative impact?

Deputy Lahart made some observations on working from home. This is something that will affect our economic performance. I think working from home is boring. That is my opinion and it is not the only opinion. Restricting oneself to working from home is not good for individuals for two reasons - boredom and lack of interaction with work colleagues and the work environment and the tendency towards working more hours, where people are forced to work by virtue of calls, commitments etc., when they are unable to do the work in the course of the day, which then drags on into the evening. Some conscientious people will then try to work after hours. That will further contribute to boredom and a poorer performance.

Two other issues will affect our economic future. We hear much about restoring houses in the centres of towns and villages to the market but we do not seem to stop and ask ourselves why such places are vacant now. One reason is people could not stand the level of noise, interaction and traffic and the racket in the background at all times. There are places on the main streets of towns and villages where sound barriers had to be erected inside buildings to ensure some quality of life for the people working there. People also moved out of the main streets because it was not safe to have children there. Where could they go? If they stepped outside the door, they were in danger. There are issues that should be borne in mind. We can rely on these alternatives but we should not pretend that they are a panacea for our problems in the future because they are not.

Working in hubs and centres throughout the country has considerable potential. Industrial parks could be developed anywhere allowing access to the central location. However, they must have communications, including top grade broadband. They give people a work environment within easy reach of their homes. They do not contribute to carbon footprints. They are an important development. They can have a huge impact on less populated parts of the country, of which there many, and can help address the lopsided nature of our economy.

From all the information I have, our procurement system is slow moving, repetitive and is not something in the interest of the public. I am not sure what the Department has found around that. I acknowledge it was mentioned earlier, but it is an area on which we need to spend considerable time to make the procurement system efficient, effective and up-to-date. A simple issue can go into the system at local level and emerge a year or two later. That is ridiculous nonsense. We cannot compete on world markets like that because we are competing with people who have developed nuances to a significant extent, and identified the negatives.

I must go into questions soon. I will stay as long as I can but please do not be offended if I am seen running out.