Results 3,361-3,380 of 26,021 for speaker:Kieran O'Donnell

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: Mr. O'Mahony is an experienced official. With due respect, this is about cash flow and managing scarce taxpayers' resources. What year were the 120 ordered?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: I can understand the 120, 30 and 33. Was there a decline in passenger numbers? In my view one could see a major dip in the Celtic tiger economy in July 2007. When in 2008 were the carriages purchased?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: They were purchased after the bank guarantee. We were in a situation where Ireland did not have those resources. What was the methodology used by the Department and Irish Rail to sign off on 51 carriages, which is 19 more than were ordered in the previous year? Were passenger numbers increasing? What was the logic? Why did they not pull back and re-order? Mr. O'Mahony speaks about their...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: With due respect, that is stating the obvious.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: What I am interested in is the methodology. The job of the Committee of Public Accounts is to find out if the procedures within Departments are robust. Explain the process by which these 51 carriages were agreed.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: They were ordered in December 2008, which was two months after the bank guarantee was put in place.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: That is fine, and I accept that. In 2008, a system should have been put in place whereby Irish Rail could have looked at the 51 carriages and come up with an options system based on passenger numbers. Things were clearly slowing down across a range of areas. The Department should request Irish Rail to get a valuation of these carriages and of their disposal value.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: That still has not been provided.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: Is Mr. O'Mahony aware of the figure?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: If a business orders stock way in excess of what is required, there is an old rule about working capital and running a business. When this order was made, the methodology and due diligence were soft and not rigorous enough. Ultimately, people living in Ireland - the taxpayer, the person in receipt of social welfare or whoever - are picking up the tab. It should not have happened. It is an...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: I accept that point, but even then, I hope this will never happen again. A strategic view must be taken of these carriages. Will they ever be put into use? If they will never be put into use, there will have to be a proper evaluation. I hope we will have a further rigorous evaluation. This is not personal, but it should not have happened. It is a waste of taxpayers' money. I believe in...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: How much has been paid in 2010, 2011 and 2012?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: I want a breakdown.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: So, roughly, we are talking about €15 million overall, and for the past two years, of the order of €7 million to €8 million in total each year. What are the projections for both of those? I note there is a PPP in place for the Limerick tunnel up to 2041 and for Clonee up to 2025. It is 28 years in the case of the Limerick tunnel and 12 years in the case of Clonee....

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: The NRA would have done forecasts on traffic volumes.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: Is that 2.5% growth per annum?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: Based on 2.5% growth per annum, how much will the NRA end up putting in per annum?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: So for the next 28 years - looking at the figures for Limerick, which were €4.453 million and €4.497 million - the State could pay another €112 million, a total of €120 million over the lifetime of the contract.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: Which are of the order of €4 million per year for Limerick?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 32 - Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments Under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 26 - Collection of Motor Taxation
Financial Statements 2011 - National Roads Authority (7 Feb 2013)

Kieran O'Donnell: That is an astronomical amount of money. The State might pay more than €100 million over that 28-year period. In negotiations with the PPP provider, were the figures for traffic volumes too generous on the part of the NRA?