Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

I notice the former Tánaiste is as far away from the current Tánaiste as she can get. There is no need for comment.

I wish to ask the Taoiseach about the recent announcement by the Government and the Minister for Transport of what is the biggest infrastructural project in the history of the State, the metro north to Swords which will go from St. Stephen's Green to Dublin Airport in 17 minutes with 15 stops.

The credibility of the Minister, Deputy Cullen, with regard to delivery, has been seriously damaged by his incapacity or his inability to give even an overall figure of what the cost will be. As the Tánaiste will be aware, for this project to succeed will require a national buy-in, absolute certainty as to the cost and the business case for investment and the consequent benefits to the customer and the consumer. This transparency is completely missing in this case.

The ESRI report issued today clearly states that major rail projects must be the subject of a full cost-benefit analysis and this makes sense. There is broad public support for the project. Anything that will tend to alleviate the frustration of hundreds of thousands of motorists, consumers and citizens in this city, is welcome. However, doubts are being expressed about this project. The number of occasions on which it has been announced previously and the failure of the Government to deliver on time and on budget on so many major projects in this city, leaves the credibility of the Minister for Transport in tatters.

I wish to ask the Taoiseach a straight question. What is his estimate of the cost of this project? Is it €1 billion, between €1 billion and €5 billion or as much as €15 billion, according to some estimates? What is the overall figure? Given that the taxpayer will be paying for this until 2040, is the Taoiseach prepared to state that the issues determining credibility of a project such as this, in terms of the case for investment being made and evaluation before the project is given the green light, will all be published so that the public at large will know exactly what is involved in the project? The Taoiseach has €3 billion of taxpayers' money in respect of which the Government has been unable to budget in the past. It must be transparent and be published so everybody understands what is involved.

See this speech in context