Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)

The Minister has not given me any facts. Did the Minister distinguish, in the discussion with an bord snip nua, between capital and current projects? Did he distinguish between national priorities in terms of transport infrastructure? The key point that he and his Department should have made, if they did not make it, is that it was never cheaper to build infrastructure projects than it is now and that, on average, they are coming in 20% less than what was the case in the previous year, and may be even less again next year. The process sounds like a confession box in which no confession was made. The an bord snip nua man was there, the Minister was on his knees but he said nothing. It is clear he said nothing and therefore the axe may fall universally on his Department rather than on where the waste is located. What proposals, if any, does the Minister have in terms of current expenditure cutbacks or efficiencies?

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