Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I am here just over two years and, in those two years, time after time the Minister has come in here to eulogise the privatisation of broadband. I almost feel sorry for him that by now he is probably choking on his words. He repeatedly says what a wonderful plan this is and what it is going to do for the country. Bidder after bidder has fallen aside but the Minister still comes in here to justify the privatisation of broadband. We are now on the hook to the remaining bidder. The Minister will not tell us who it is or how much it is costing but we will find out soon enough when the decision is actually made.

Will the procurement team that is looking at this bid be in a position to say "no"? If it says "no", where then does the Minister go? Is there any possibility that we could keep in public hands even a fraction of this service? The root of all this lies at the original decision by Fianna Fáil to privatise Telecom Éireann, and we all know what a disaster that was. The Minister is eulogising privatisation when it is made clear time after time that just getting rid of important national infrastructure like this is a mistake. Can the Minister say "no" to the current procurement bidder if that is a decision that his procurement team could make?

Could we realistically see any attempt by the State to hold on to some of this important national infrastructure?

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