Joanna Tuffy (Labour)

I thank the Minister and her staff for bringing forward this Bill and for all the work they have done. My father, Eamon Tuffy, would be flattered to be mentioned in this debate. I agree with Senator Fitzgerald regarding the pioneering work of the VEC-DIT over many years. As I said on Second Stage, this is a tradition that must be continued and built upon. Institutions such as University College Dublin are very much following in the wake in terms of the type of work done by facilities such as those in Bolton Street and Kevin Street, particularly in the areas of part-time and further education.

I have already raised the issue of the reduction in numbers of part-time students in Dublin Institute of Technology and it is a matter that has also been raised with the Minister by Deputy O'Sullivan in the Dáil. That reduction may be taking place in a particular context and blame cannot be apportioned to anybody in particular in this regard. However, it is important that this issue should be examined by the institute authorities and the Minister because it goes against all the advice form OECD and other bodies. We should be building up the numbers of part-time students in the institute.

This is a unique and significant project but the manner of its devising has been worthwhile and it is an approach that should be taken with other projects. There may be other instances when it is useful to establish an agency to promote and sponsor a particular project and develop a strategic way of planning its implementation on an ongoing basis. This is not something that has been done often in the past, with the exceptions of Adamstown and the Dublin docklands. It is important that large projects are undertaken in a strategic way rather than taking a piecemeal or ad hoc approach to planning. The outcome will be all the better for that.

The Minister said this project does not compare to Adamstown but it has a similar effect in the sense that it involves a significant development in the middle of an area that is already developed. Adamstown was a largely residential town but those who made an input to its development were not necessarily going to live there. The same applies to the development at the Grangegorman site. The residents may not necessarily work or study there, although it is to be hoped that many of them will do so.

In any case, they have a vested interest in how the site turns out. The provisions are there to facilitate consultation with the local community and it is important that this takes place. There is often some reluctance to allow this of consultation. For example, South Dublin County Council was apprehensive about the outcome of the process of consultation which took place in regard to Adamstown but went ahead and took on board the views of the various interested parties. The plan that was produced out of this process was all the better for that consultation and I hope the same will happen in regard to the development of the Dublin Institute of Technology site. The local community should have a major and ongoing part in the development of the DIT.