Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)

Following the announcement by Dublin City Council on Monday, 19 May 2008, that a number of regeneration projects being carried out through PPP arrangements would not proceed as planned, my Department and the council met to examine the implications of the announcement for the projects concerned. The city council has informed the Department that, while the developer in question has not formally withdrawn from the projects, he has indicated that due to the adversely changed circumstances of the current private housing market, along with additional costs cited due to increased apartment sizes and new energy requirements, the approach under which the projects were tendered is unsustainable in the current market.

I understand that a further meeting between the council and the developer concerned took place yesterday and, arising from this, the developer is to submit proposals to the council by Thursday of this week, setting out an approach through which he considers the projects might be taken forward. The council has undertaken to consider these proposals as a matter of urgency. My Department is also examining the potential implications of these events for the PPP housing programme generally and a specialist group has been established to further this aim. My main concern at this stage is to reassure the communities directly involved that the regeneration process continues. Dublin City Council remains firmly committed to this objective and my Department will continue to engage actively with the council as it endeavours to move the process forward as quickly as possible.

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