Síle de Valera (Clare, Fianna Fail)

In asking the House to endorse the achievements of the Government in addressing the accommodation needs of primary schools, I assure Senators that the programme of capital investment in the primary sector will continue and that the allocation of €147 million for 2003 will enable us to consolidate the very considerable progress that has been made over the last several years. Admittedly, in view of current economic realities and the tightening of the financial position, the rate of progress in 2003 will be somewhat slower than we would have liked.

Contrary to what has been said by the Opposition parties here and in the Dáil, neither the Minister, Deputy Dempsey, nor his immediate predecessor have ever underestimated the scale of the task facing us or the length of time required to address the many accommodation problems in primary schools. As a result of under-investment over the course of decades, many schools are in a poor state of repair and require substantial funding for upgrading to meet modern requirements. There is no point in pretending that it will be possible to improve the accommodation situation in all schools overnight and deal with emerging needs at the same time.

Capital expenditure on primary buildings in 2002 will be €172.6 million. As a result of the Government's commitment to funding educational infrastructure, in excess of 120 major capital projects in the primary sector have recently been completed or are under construction. Many of these projects will continue in construction into 2003.

I want to dispel a misunderstanding that has arisen in relation to the 400 major primary school projects in architectural planning that are listed on my Department's website. These projects were not included in the 2002 construction programme. Because they are major projects, they have to go through a detailed process of architectural planning which can take a considerable period to complete.

The starting date for construction of any major school building project depends on factors such as its size; the complexity of the architectural planning; land acquisition, where necessary; sorting out title to the property; the period required for the granting of planning permission and obtaining a fire certificate; the outcome of the tender competition and the procurement of bonds; and insurance and tax clearance by prospective contractors. The financial commitments to be met from building projects already in construction are also important factors in determining the number of projects that may proceed at any given time. It is my Department's intention to release the projects in architectural planning to construction on a phased basis over a number of years.