Marian Harkin (Sligo-Leitrim, Independent)

I thank the Deputy for her question. I am pleased to say this is my first opportunity to respond to an oral question. I am also pleased that it relates to Dunboyne College, which I know. I am familiar with the great work that is happening there.

Louth Meath ETB, LMETB, is being supported by SOLAS in developing its preliminary business case, PBC, proposal for Dunboyne under the FET college of the future major projects fund and they have met as recently as this month to progress the application. The proposal put forward by LMETB relates to the development of a new fit-for-purpose facility on a greenfield site in Dunboyne to replace the existing rented accommodation in Dunboyne. It is one of 12 projects being progressed under this fund.

LMETB is refining its business case proposal and once completed, it will submit it to SOLAS for evaluation. The evaluation panel will be available to meet as soon as the updated business case is received. Business cases that meet the evaluation criteria will advance to the next stage of development: pre-tender, project design, planning, and procurement strategy. The development of a robust PBC is fundamental to the requirements of the infrastructure guidelines. The appropriateness or otherwise of a phased development of the proposal, which the Deputy inquired about, is a matter for the evaluation panel to determine.

Funding for all projects under this programme, including the proposal from LMETB for Dunboyne, will come from within the FET college of the future major projects fund envelope. The Department and I are committed to delivering this project as part of 12 key projects that were announced under the FET college of the future major projects fund.

Deputy Gillian Toole: I thank the Minister of State for her updated information. I reiterate that this college is delivering. At various times in this Chamber we have discussed the need for occupational therapists, speech and language therapists and the development of apprenticeship programmes and construction studies. LMETB colleges can deliver that. This process began in 2015 when Dunboyne was added to the building list of the then Department of Education and Skills. Currently, the rent roll is just short of €100 million a year to 23 landlords. That includes transportation costs. Such costs are unsustainable. Currently, the college is operating from an industrial estate where numerous health and safety issues arise. It is an absolute waste of money. I plead for the single-phase case, because since this process began in 2015 there has been a lot of to'ing and fro'ing with the Department. There has been significant engagement, including by staff members whose core function is the education of the students whom they highly value.

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