Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail)

Before suggesting that a bad deal was made, we should remember the levels of emigration then and that the country was on its knees. The then Fianna Fáil Government should be proud of its actions. I grant the Opposition some credit for commencing the changes, although it is a pity it was not around to drive them through.

There is talk that the Minister should take NTR to court. In the context of the heavy involvement of multinational companies in this economy, the State would do great damage to its credibility on the international stage, at a time when it is trying to encourage public private partnerships, if it was to renege on an agreement in order to pull a private company through the courts for political purposes. I do not want the Minister to take that step. A contract has been agreed to and NTR has to be compensated. Good luck to the company because it got it right. The reality is that the money collected through tolls will be required to pay compensation and to ensure that the M50 is upgraded. We have accepted tolling in other parts of the country and the people of the west and south should not pay for Dublin's difficulties.