Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy McCarthy giving me the opportunity to address the House on this matter. I also thank him for his kind words. We have had an opportunity engage in a number of schemes in west Cork over the past number of months and I am pleased the Clonakilty scheme is progressing, as is the Skibbereen scheme. Along with Deputy McCarthy's Oireachtas colleagues, I was grateful to meet with the delegation from Skibbereen in recent weeks.

Since my appointment as Minister of State, I have had the opportunity to visit many areas of the country affected by flooding and have met many people who have suffered the consequences of these floods. I am very well aware of the situation in Bandon and of the fear of the people of the town of such events, in particular since the 2009 flood event, to which Deputy McCarthy alluded.

Since that particular flooding in 2009, the Office of Public Works has prioritised the development of a viable flood relief scheme for the town and has been working hard, along with Cork County Council, to achieve the completion of the final design of the scheme and the commencement of construction at the earliest possible date.

With this objective, a scheme has been designed which will benefit more than 360 properties, of which over 140 are residential properties, following significant consultation with all relevant stakeholders. The proposed works, which will be undertaken on the Bandon River, Bridewell River and Mill Stream, include dredging of approximately 3.6 km of the Bandon River, mainly downstream of the town; repair works and modifications to the Bandon Weir; replacement of the existing pedestrian bridge with a new three span pedestrian bridge; underpinning of Bandon Bridge; construction of new flood defence walls and improvement to others; construction of new earthen flood embankments; construction of new culverts; construction of new fish passes; and associated drainage works and services diversions.

The current procurement process to tender for a civil works contractor began in July 2014 when the contract was advertised on the e-tenders website and in the EU Journal. This is a two-stage process, as Deputy McCarthy will know, which involves an initial pre-qualifying stage to shortlist suitable contractors to be invited to tender for the works at the second stage. The pre-qualifying stage involves the interested contractors completing a suitability assessment questionnaire to allow the contracting authority, in this case the OPW, to obtain information from applicants to enable it to assess their capabilities and competency to undertake the works. The questionnaire specifies the criteria that will be used to evaluate the applications, some of which are simple pass-fail criteria, for example, health and safety systems, and others involve additional qualitative assessment, for example, technical competence and experience. This is a standard procedure within the Government construction procurement framework.

The process has now been delayed, unfortunately, as a result of a legal challenge from a contractor who was not placed on the shortlist from which bids were to be invited. The OPW is currently taking legal advice on the matter and, because the matter is before the courts, I am sure Deputy McCarthy will understand that I cannot comment on issues or details surrounding the challenge.

What I can confirm is that I and the Government remain fully committed to the provision of a scheme for the people of Bandon. The OPW has made provision for the cost of implementing a scheme in Bandon in its financial profiles over the years 2015-17. I am confident the current legal issue will be resolved as quickly as possible and that the project can then progress towards the construction stage. The staff in the OPW and their legal advisers are working as hard as they possibly can to try to resolve this matter as quickly as they possibly can.

Once a contractor is appointed and the scheme is underway, it is expected that it will take approximately two years to complete. I understand the frustration people feel at these latest developments and the length of time it is taking to bring this scheme to construction. Both I and the Office of Public Works share this as a frustration given the significant work, engagement and consultation that has been undertaken with the community to get to this point. I also understand the real difficulties that this can cause in terms of the non-availability of flood insurance for households and businesses. I assure Deputy McCarthy and this House that the OPW and its partners, Cork County Council, remain committed to implementing the scheme for Bandon in the shortest possible timeframe.

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