Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

In the context of current Government procedures, we are supposed to do a cost analysis. My Department did not have available the information, when I last asked, as to what the costing of this will be. A scoping exercise has been done since I have been appointed as Minister and I expect within a short time to have the detail of the outcome of that from my officials as to its likely cost. It will give me an opportunity to assess whether the funding is available to me within the Department in this year's Estimates to meet that expenditure and if it is not, I will tell the House. If it is, I hope we can advance this with some speed because it is in the public interest that we do so.

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