Results 6,441-6,460 of 19,445 for speaker:Brian Cowen

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I confirm to Deputy Gilmore that it is the intention of the Government to proceed with the building of a prison on that site-----

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: -----and to do so on the basis of a proposal to be drawn up by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. The prison will meet the functionality and requirements of a prison in a way that will provide better value for money than that which is currently available under the existing arrangements and on the basis of the current design. On the question of the development of Mountjoy,...

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: The proposed development at Mountjoy will proceed once Thornton Hall has been completed.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: A prison.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: The reason I mentioned the Shanganagh sale was to clarify the position in case people were under the impression that the €40 million was obtained from the Estimate from the Department of Finance. It was obtained by the management of the prison estate.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I am delighted to hear that it sold the prison to the local authority.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: Of course it is public money.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: Is it being suggested that it should not have been obtained for that price and that the €40 million was received from somewhere else?

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: The point should be fairly made in the interests of accuracy-----

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: The point should be fairly made in the interests of accuracy that through management of its estate the Prison Service funded the purchase of the 150 acres in Thornton Hall-----

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: -----by disposing of 18 acres in Shanganagh for another purpose, which as Deputy Gilmore said went to a local authority.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I believe that is a good thing.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: Not at all. I was making the point that out of its own resources and its own estate, the Prison Service was in a position to purchase the site we are speaking about.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: On the question of other money that was spent on the site, there were two High Court challenges, and there was a necessity to carry out various surveys in the interests of preparing the site in any case and in dealing with the High Court challenges that arose. Those were expenses which could not be avoided, given that there were other people who were entitled to make a challenge against the...

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: That will be determined once the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform draws up an alternative proposal.

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: The Deputy either wants an answer to the question, or he does not. I am prepared to give him an answer if he wishes to hear it. It can be done on a phased basis through direct procurement, or we can see if it can be done

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: This is pathetic. I know the Deputy wants to be taken seriously, but he is the only comic I know who does not smile. The prison can be built through public private partnership, and we need to take into account the changed construction cost conditions that are now in place. This tender was made in January 2007, at the height of the construction cost period, so savings and economies can be...

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I do. The Deputy can be assured that the prison will be built there on the basis of a proposal to come from the Minister for Finance-----

Leaders' Questions (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: -----as soon as we agree on a design, put it to tender in the normal way and proceed with it. Many of the capital projects are coming in on time and on budget, as the Deputy knows but will not admit.

Ireland-America Economic Advisory Board. (20 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I recently met with the Ireland-America Economic Advisory Board during my Saint Patrick's Day visit to the United States. The body provides a structure through which the thinking of the most senior and successful leaders of corporate Irish-America can be conveyed directly, and at the highest level, to the Government. My Department maintains contact with the body primarily through the Irish...