James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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I do not for one second take away the serious security issues on Merrion Street. Somebody was able to drive around Dublin of an evening and drive into the gates of Áras an Úachtaráin. The same person was then able to come down to Merrion Street and drive into the gates of the Department of the Taoiseach and then into the gates of Leinster House, and get away with it. That says a lot. That is more a policing issue. I do not believe it is for the OPW. However, ultimately, this is a facility that is not manned by An Garda Síochána. I do not for a second believe it merited the spending €1.4 million on that facility itself. I will give Mr. Conlon a piece of homework from today's meeting and that is to go down and have a look at it, if he has not been down to see it. It is as ridiculous as it looks. The public is right to be angry about it.