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

Affordability has always been a test, in the commercial area and in any other. The proposal is that, in the vast majority of cases, the service must be available at the same price as in any other area.

Obviously, when there is only one bidder left, one has to take far greater care in overseeing the process. That is why it is going on the way it is going on. There is a lot of work being done by the State whereby one does not have the normal two people vying on price. The State has to do a lot of vetting and checking at each step on the road to determine whether what is being put forward is reasonable. That is why all the evaluation is taking place.

The decision has certainly not already been made. The person who issued the tweet should not have issued it. He has played a major role in this, however. He has always been very important and passionate. He recognised that what happened should not have happened, and it will not happen again. Any such communication will go through the press office in the normal course.

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