Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)

Major international tunnelling projects have been completed well within that timeframe. I have no doubt it is possible to do this. My expectation is that we will deliver it. I do not, however, underestimate the complexity of delivering the projects. One of the major tasks assigned to Dr. Margaret O'Mahony was identifying a key person with the necessary hands-on project experience, particularly in the area of tunnelling, to head the Dublin Transport Authority. Very few people around the world have this experience. I have spoken with individuals from the UK, US and elsewhere about this type of experience and capacity. Deputies are aware that I visited the UK to understand the scale behind the development of terminal five at Heathrow Airport. This project is akin to, but of a lesser scale than, the two major tunnelling projects in Dublin — the metro and the intercity connector. Connecting the stations involved is a significant project.

We examined the matter in detail before Transport 21 was published and there is no doubt we can accomplish it. We have learned lessons from our earlier projects. The roads programme is indicative of the scale of delivery on budget and well ahead of time. I would be more than satisfied if——

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