Results 14,141-14,160 of 36,274 for speaker:Pearse Doherty

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: The original cost of the project was estimated at €500 million. It is now reported that it could be in the region of €3 billion, which is six times as much. Has the cost-benefit analysis been updated as a result?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: Does that still allow for the project to proceed on the basis of the cost-benefit analysis?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: A negative cost-benefit analysis-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: What knowledge does the Taoiseach have on the costs at this point?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: Is the Taoiseach in receipt of the information on the likely cost of the project to the Irish taxpayer?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: The Taoiseach said there needs to be a process of consultation. When does he expect to share that with the public, who will be footing the bill, and the political parties that, given the length of the project, may be in government when the funds have to be sourced?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: The Taoiseach referred on the record yesterday to a conversation with the Opposition. Is his intention to have the Government make a decision and then to have a conversation with the Opposition on what it has approved, the cost and what can be done? We have one bidder. We are over a barrel in regard to that bidder. There is infrastructure for which rural communities have been crying out....

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: Is this matter scandalous in the same way as the cost overrun or underestimation in regard to the national children's hospital, as described by the Taoiseach?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: The Taoiseach has more sight of it than we do. I am just trying to figure out what we, being in the dark, can know. We know the likely cost is multiples of €500 million. The overrun is well above that for the national children's hospital. We are not talking about hundreds of millions of euro but potentially billions. Is it not scandalous that the Government got its estimates for...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: No, it is not because the reality is that the overrun involves a lot more bloody money. It amounts to billions of euro in addition. What we are hearing from the media is that the range is between €1.5 billion and €3 billion.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: Underestimation.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: Before anything is put out to tender, an assessment is made of the range of potential costs.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: There was a cost-benefit analysis already done on this project at the early stage based on a cost of €500 million. This could end up in the region of €3 billion. This is a spectacular underestimation, or overrun, on a planned project of national importance. It really questions how the Government is handling major capital infrastructure projects. I refer to the fact that the...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: We have a capital envelope for the period to 2021. Some €275 million has been allocated for this from the State's point of view. There has been an estimation, factored into our budgetary arithmetic, based on a figure of €500 million. Regardless of the way in which the Taoiseach wants to play with the words, there is a spectacular overrun on this project, if it ever sees the...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: The point I am making is that if the Government continues to run over on capital budgets by €2 billion here or €500 million there, then it needs to acknowledge that there are problems with how it dealt with the tendering process. We are now down to one individual company and are over a barrel, as the Taoiseach said. There is no other quicker solution. It has been delayed so...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: I will go onto some other points briefly. Does the Taoiseach believe that the Moriarty tribunal was value for money?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: I ask because the Taoiseach has raised questions about tribunals and commissions of inquiry------

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: Does the Taoiseach have any concerns about the Government relying on one of the key characters, the star of the Moriarty tribunal, and the Taoiseach's engagement on several occasions with Mr. O'Brien who was also one of the stars of the Moriarty tribunal?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: The Government is supported by Deputy Lowry. The tribunal was very clear that payments were made from Mr. O'Brien to Deputy Lowry which amounted to close to £1 million in three different transactions. This is well documented. I am sure that the Taoiseach has read the report of the Moriarty tribunal. I am talking about the Taoiseach's engagements with Mr. O'Brien, for example his...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2019
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of An Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 4 - Central Statistics Office (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Office of the Chief State Solicitor (Revised) (28 Feb 2019)

Pearse Doherty: That is fair enough. I am asking about value for money and the integrity of the tribunals; does the Taoiseach have any concerns about the Government-----