Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)

I want to raise a number of issues with the Minister about the rationale for this legislation. There are implications for the transferring of this function to the Department of Transport but can the Department of Transport deal with these additional responsibilities? The Department of Transport has become a vast empire. A number of issues that have arisen there, for example, the disastrous privatisation of Aer Lingus and the implications for Shannon Airport and the whole region; the learner drivers fiasco; and the apparent inability of the Department to deliver on most of the Transport 21 projects. With all that taking place, will the Department be capable of delivering any additional projects and functions on time and within budget?

There is a history of transfer of functions into and out of the Department of Transport which has not been successful and would not inspire confidence in the ability of the Minister and his Department to successfully realise these additional functions. For example, during the previous Dáil, responsibility for ports and marine transport was transferred from the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources to the Department of Transport yet it appeared to fall into a black hole, so to speak, in that Department where it was not given adequate attention or resources. Will that happen to the roads functions now being transferred?

Deputy Lynch expressed concerns about the type of accountability that will arise regarding the building of these roads. Who will be accountable if there are problems with them? The Minister might clarify that because he did not refer to it in his contribution. Where will the accountability arise if there are legal actions regarding issues that arise out of the maintenance or building of these roads in future? Who will be the defendant in such actions? Will the Minister clarify that?

The Minister mentioned funding of roads building with the new transfer function and said that this year, in addition to the €87.5 million, there would be money from the local government fund. He went on to say that this will be the benchmark going forward. Are the Green Party Members getting into corporate speak now, which is difficult to decipher? I want the use of the term "going forward" to be banned and the Minister should start with that.

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