John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Fianna Fail)

The first phase of the audit is under way in my Department. There is no doubt but that it will not be completed before the forthcoming election. However, I anticipate that in due course the results of the audit will be made available. Facilities which are grant aided must comply with certain criteria. Each proposal is benchmarked against this criteria. A project that does not qualify having been benchmarked does not receive grant aid. Where grant aid is approved it does not automatically follow that the funding will accrue to the organisation concerned. All of the conditions imposed in respect of the allocation of a grant must be fulfilled by the organisation concerned. This includes compliance with all relevant planning guidelines and by-laws and the availability of local funding for the project. Projects are not simply plucked from here and there, each project is benchmarked against a set of strict criteria. Many of the issues raised by Deputy Gogarty are covered by the criteria used in the benchmarking process.

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