Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

If there are external ways of ensuring we do things efficiently and get value for money, I am open to considering them. The National Development Finance Agency is doing great work and at the heart of these projects. Now that we have a ten-year capital budget and trajectory, we will work within that fixed budget. There are constraints and it keeps on the pressure to ensure we try as best as we possibly can to keep costs down. For example, we are looking at methods such as the Accelerated Delivery and Architectural Planning and Tendering programme, about which I will speak later. A project manager is brought in to do the job at a very early stage in order that we can be as efficient as possible. The most important factor is the quality of the product and the safety of the building when finished. A strong message coming from young people, within both the primary and secondary school sectors, is that there should be nothing less than environmentally friendly construction. They raise concerns about such matters as solar panels and achieving efficiencies. I am conscious that they have these concerns. The nearly zero energy building standard will ensure new and additional buildings will meet those concerns.

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