Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

-----of connecting 1.1 million people across rural Ireland to high-speed broadband. What are those wider societal benefits? They are, for example, access to ehealth and education online, which is now becoming an increasingly important aspect of education, with kids being able to download from Google and access apps online. It does not take into account the climate action benefits that arise from this. More people will be able to work from home and fewer people will be commuting. It does not take into account the positive impact that it could have on matters such as rural isolation. I think the cost-benefit analysis is actually conservative in that regard.

On the financial and other capacities of the bidder, I am aware that the bidder passed all of the tests for capacity and was assessed in terms of its capacity and capability before it pre-qualified for this.

KPMG is a respected company, accounting house and auditor and it would be wrong to cast aspersions on the company in this House and somehow suggest that it is conflicted. That is unfair.

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