Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

To give another example, some of the lists that have been given can be a bit arbitrary. Apparently, it costs €18 per tonne of gravel but €10 per tonne bag of sand even though they are precisely the same weight. There is a difference in price even though it involves the same mechanism and that surprises people.

One of the key findings on the future of the islands relates to the challenges that exist in sustaining populations on the islands in terms of housing but the cost of building houses on the islands, even when one gets past all of the planning obstacles, is very substantial. Some of this comes back to the philosophy. What is the purpose of the subsidy? The subsidy should be to offset the additional cost that exists for islanders. Our objective should be to ensure they are no worse off than people on the mainland. Is that being achieved at the minute? I am not sure.

On the funding model, I came back with a written question that there is not a public service obligation, PSO, mechanism, it is a contract for services approach. It suggests that these needs could not be met under PSO. Will the Minister of State expand on that? What is the evidence or rationale that needs could not be met under PSO?

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