John O'Mahony (Mayo, Fine Gael)

I wish to support this motion and to commend Deputy Fergus O'Dowd and the Fine Gael Party on tabling it.

Other speakers have raised the issue of significant amounts of taxpayers' money being paid to the NRA and CIE in the past 11 or 12 years. A total of almost €20 billion has been paid through these agencies to provide much needed upgrades in our infrastructural network in roads and railways and to ensure efficient and reliable services on our trains and buses throughout the country. The reality is that some of that money has been well spent but many questions remain to be answered on a significant amount that has been badly spent, misspent, overspent or wasted. It would be in some way acceptable if there were transparent and accountable procedures in place such that people could be held accountable for the mistakes made and the money wasted. If that happened, structures could be put in place to prevent a recurrence and the public's confidence would be somewhat restored. Instead, we found out many years later there was in excess of a €4.1 billion overrun on the roads programme adding 60% to the original cost. The NRA was set up to avoid such an occurrence but instead facilitated it.

The port tunnel is a good case in point. Eventually, it cost four times the original estimate, overshooting the costing by €580 million. It was discovered late in the day that it was not big enough to accommodate certain trucks. Some weeks ago my colleague, Deputy O'Dowd, discovered that it was not safe for use when it opened in 2006. This would be very funny were it not so serious.

It is not acceptable that CIE does not come under the remit of the Comptroller and Auditor General such that no proper audit or analysis of spending can take place. Also, it is not good enough that CIE does not come under the Freedom of Information Act, as outlined earlier by Deputy O'Dowd.

It is in no one's interest that there is a lack of transparency and accountability in these two bodies and it is not fair on the hundreds of people who work in these organisations, who do a fine job, but are hampered by archaic and restrictive practices that erode confidence in the public mindset. For example, subventions to Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann have quadrupled in recent years but buses are now being taken off routes instead of an increase in services. This must be explained. Deputy O'Dowd referred to the need to answer questions on the substantive issue. However, as Deputy Hayes remarked, at a local level issues remain and in my constituency of Mayo there are ongoing threats to bus routes in rural and tourist areas such as Cong and Achill that require accessibility from larger towns and cities. Recently, a bus was withdrawn which services Ireland West Airport in Knock.

The lack of accountability and transparency has had a significant impact on the ability of Deputies to get answers for constituents within a reasonable timeframe. Questions to the Minister are usually passed on, kicked to touch or not answered at all. For example, it may be a small issue in the overall context, today I received an answer from the NRA regarding the adjustment of speed limits on an NRA road but I have been chasing the answer for almost two years. We also get the same "pass the parcel" approach between county councils and the NRA on matters of signage or access from bypasses to original roads. The Minister opened the Charlestown bypass more than one and a half years ago but ongoing trouble with accessibility to the older road continues and many accidents have taken place. Similarly the early bird train service between Mayo and Dublin was announced recently. It will travel from Westport and Castlebar but Ballina and north Mayo have been totally ignored. Given the delay in the building of the N26 route, this service could have been extended to the north of the county. These matters may not be important to the Minister but they are very important to my constituency and others throughout the country. I strongly commend the motion to the House.

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