Tom Morrissey (Progressive Democrats)

I thank the Minister of State for attending to reply to my motion on the Dublin Port tunnel. As we all know, the Dublin Port tunnel is a major infrastructure project for this country, and for this city in particular. Depending on what figures one reads, it is over budget or on budget, and it is either on time or over time. That is not what I want to raise today.

I am raising the issue of the confidence and reassurance we must have that the specifications for what we are building are correct and that it is constructed according to those specifications. I received a press statement yesterday from Dublin City Council, stating that all is well and there is nothing to worry about. For any construction company to let somebody loose with a kango hammer near a membrane of a port tunnel seems to be careless in the extreme. When one views the television footage, one cannot have great confidence in the project.

I want reassurance that when people use this tunnel after in opens in a few months time, any leaks will be properly and adequately dealt with. We all realise that water finds its own level and if there is a leak it will move on to the next weakest spot. It is quite alarming to hear that the initial problem in a major infrastructural project was due to the unsatisfactory thickness of cement in the walls and cavities. It calls into question the type of overseeing at the time of construction.

The Department of Finance is strenuously examining whether to have a metro in the city and Transport 21 has given the go-ahead for one, which will require extensive tunnelling. We must have assurances that we have the experience and expertise to construct correctly any tunnels we build. As I stated, the Dublin City Council press statement, which perhaps was sent to the Minister of State's office as well as mine, seems to state we should not worry about this and that it will all be fixed in two weeks. If a membrane has been cracked, it will be difficult to repair it correctly, given the water leakage, and ensure that it cannot recur at that spot again.

When one sees the level of scaffolding holding that membrane in place, one wonders whether it raises a health and safety issue. I asked Dublin City Council for an answer to that question. I have not received a reply. What assurances can the Minister for State give?