Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)

The predicament of the people who lived in the Priory Hall complex was big news a while back and then it was in the news again but, sadly for them, the nightmare has not gone away. I visited the complex last week and from a construction point of view, it is a disaster. There is a good deal of poor workmanship in it, poor building methods were used, the complex is not damp-proof or water-proof. It is not safe and what has happened is certainly not fair to the residents.

The council said that it will take €6 million to €7 million to fix it. As a builder, I think it might be a better idea to knock it down and start again. Someone has to take responsibility for it and someone has to help the residents.

In terms of responsibility, the builder is the biggest culprit. Did he have insurance? He was supposed to have it. The architect signed off on the development but he should not have done so. Did he have insurance? He should have had it. The engineer signed off on the development and, from an engineering point of view, it should not have been signed off on. Had the engineer insurance? The bank, which agreed to grant mortgages to the tenants, sent out a valuer and he passed units and said they were worth the money the bank parted with in terms of the mortgages. What will the bank do about this? It is pretty obvious the council did not inspect the complex properly because if it had, it would not have allowed it to be passed either.

At this stage the people are in a terrible predicament and nobody seems to care. While the problems in respect of this complex might not have started during the Government's term, given that the council had been negligent the Government has to intervene because it does not appear that anyone else will do anything for these people. Somebody has to sort it out. The Government should initiate a process to make things happen.

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