Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am not given all of the figures but I am satisfied with the process of how this is handled. There are four stages at which we assess the value to make sure that the taxpayer is getting value for money and that is how we judge this too. I will talk the Deputy through the process. The key criteria for assessing whether a PPP project represents value for money for the executive follow the guidance set out by the central PPP unit in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. This guidance sets out four specific tests that are applied to PPPs over the course of the planning and procurement process. The tests focus on assessing whether the PPP approach compares favourably with the alternative cost of using traditional procurement to achieve the same result. There are different methods of traditional procurement but they are all compared to make sure that we get the best value for money and do not lose out. Only one of the social housing PPP programmes has met the relevant thresholds for each of the four tests in this rigorous process and I am confident that it demonstrates value for money. That is the Deputy's concern, which the Minister, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, and I also have, to deliver top quality, good value housing quickly. We are satisfied that the process delivers that. The Deputy wants to have information released. I understand why he wants that but it would not be appropriate to do that at this stage. We are committed to release it after three bundles.

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