Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Obviously, I cannot give a timeline because there are many issues involved, including the planning application, the detail and the design, all of which are issues that have to be completed by the design team. The necessary consents have to be obtained. Those are not in the control of my Department. I assure the Deputy that when projects reach a certain point, as has been the case this year, a block of schools are released to go to tender. We make sure that we are in a position where all moneys are properly utilised. We have a flow of money in the six-year programme, which will fund projects as they come to fruition. As adverted to by Deputy Burton, there are now five schools which have reached a point where they could be released to tender but we have to make sure that we are in a position to complete the construction phase. There can be delays of that nature but I assure the Deputy that the funding is being provided. We are making sure we have projects ready and we release all projects to maximise the impact on school numbers.

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