Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

I asked the question because the information we have in terms of the kind of project that traditionally would have been done under the capital programme, for example schools etc., seems to indicate it would be far more efficient and cheaper for the taxpayer in the long term for them to be done in the traditional way. While I do not rule out PPPs absolutely, the examinations we have seen of those completed to date does not make pretty reading. When one considers in detail a project like the Cork School of Music, it is a horror story. Last week the Minister of State, Deputy Batt O'Keeffe, was reported in the Irish Examiner, as rallying to the cause and saying that matters will proceed in the context of Cork as the European Capital of Culture etc. However, it is a horrific story. On the other hand the private sector indicates that it is very difficult for it to commit to the terms and conditions in the template now agreed by the Department of Finance. Given that we have the capacity to do so, the normal project that would traditionally be completed with normal capital expenditure should continue to be done that way.

There may be an argument regarding waste water treatment plants. I am not an expert on what may have gone wrong at Ringsend and I doubt if that is related to the fact that the project is a PPP. Certainly most taxpayers would say that the PPP experience leaves much to be desired in terms of value for money.

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