John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Fianna Fail)

I do not accept the lifestyle of residents will be changed as a result of the construction of a state-of-the-art 50,000 all-seater stadium at Lansdowne Road. It is the oldest rugby stadium in the world. Frankly, the alternative is worse. I have said previously that there would be a concrete jungle at Lansdowne Road if the stadium were not to go ahead. I would much prefer to have a stadium of the kind I have outlined than look into a concrete jungle of offices, apartments, commercial outlets and so on. In any event, one thing is certain: if the stadium does not get planning permission, alternatives will have to be looked at. Irrespective of what happens, it is unquestionable that Lansdowne Road will be developed for one reason or another.

I am confident we will build a stadium at Lansdowne Road. We have met every deadline to date. There are 151 submissions, 130 of which are objections with the other 21 submissions of support in one guise or another. The intention was to commence construction early in 2007. If all goes well with the planning process, that remains the objective. The construction period is 29 months. We are still on schedule and, until such time as we come off schedule, I will not pre-empt the worst.

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