Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

-----including landscaping of the site.

In addition to that, we have to add in the €26 million that was paid in 2007 for the two acre former cash and carry site adjoining Mountjoy Prison in anticipation that Mountjoy would be closing down and moving out to Thornton Hall and that the Mountjoy site would be redeveloped. The Taoiseach should remember that purchase because, as Minister for Finance, he approved the payment of the €26 million for the two acre site. It is now locked up. The plan was that there would be a great development of a new commercial village on the site of the old Mountjoy Prison when it moved out to Thornton Hall. Now we are told that the plan for Thornton Hall is awaiting some new proposals from the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

What is the alternative method by which the Thornton Hall project will now be advanced? The then Minister, Mr. McDowell, anticipated that the completion date for the entire Thornton Hall project would be 2010 or 2012 at the latest. What is the revised target date, if it will be built at all?

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