Martin Mansergh (Tipperary South, Fianna Fail)

I thank Senator Ross for raising an important issue, with which, on a personal basis, I had some dealings as a member of the Commission of the Houses of the Oireachtas up to May 2007. Walking to and from the Department of the Taoiseach, I would have seen the transformation-excavations which took place in 1999.

Part of Leinster Lawn was temporarily converted into a car park in 1999 to facilitate construction of the Leinster House 2000 office development. This building was required to provide adequate office accommodation of a good modern standard for Members and staff of the Oireachtas, and it did so. It was necessary to provide compound areas for the building contractors close to the location of the works and this resulted in the displacement of permanent car parking places in that vicinity. The temporary solution to the displacement of these places was temporarily to resurface part of the lawn for car parking.

It had been intended to restore the lawn after the Leinster House 2000 works were completed. However, at that time, there was a plan to initiate the construction of an underground car park to accommodate the total parking requirements of the Oireachtas. This underground car park was to be located under Leinster Lawn. Given that planning for the underground car park was proceeding, it was considered that spending money on the restoration of the lawn, only to dig it up again within a short period of time to facilitate construction of the underground car park, would have been a waste of taxpayers' money. Had the underground car park proceeded, Leinster Lawn would have been fully restored and all surface car parking removed underground. In the event, the underground car park did not advance at that time. There were several unresolved issues and it can be regarded as off the agenda.

It was decided in 2002 to proceed with the total refurbishment of the Kildare House office block on Kildare Street, which now accommodates many of the staff and facilities, including a crèche, supporting the Houses of the Oireachtas. It was necessary to take over the car park area in Kildare House for the building contractors compound areas, thereby displacing the car parking facilities for the building. As a result, it was decided to further postpone restoration of Leinster Lawn to accommodate the displaced car parking facilities on the temporary car park area until the Kildare House project was completed.

In 2004, at the direction of the Oireachtas, the car park at Kildare House was converted into printing facilities servicing the needs of the political parties and Members of the Oireachtas. This resulted in the permanent displacement of the car parking facilities in Kildare House and those displaced continued to park on the temporary car park on Leinster Lawn. The various phases of work at Kildare House, including the printing facilities, were completed in 2006.

The ultimate solution to the car parking requirements of the Oireachtas, which are determined by the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission, is an underground car park and this remains the objective but clearly not in the short term or, I suspect, in the medium term. However, planning for this has been further interrupted by the discovery that major works are necessary in the historic Leinster House building to address serious structural defects that have come to light following detailed engineering surveys.

Total replacement of all electrical and mechanical installations is also necessary. Unfortunately, undertaking these works will necessitate the relocation of all staff and facilities from the building for the duration of the works and this will require the siting of builders compounds, temporary accommodation, etc., on the Leinster Lawn area. The effect of all this is to postpone yet again the restoration of Leinster Lawn. It is not possible yet to say definitively when these major works will be undertaken as this will be a decision for the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission.

The information accompanying the planning documentation, which was on public display, specifically stated that the lawn would be reinstated on completion of the new building works. That did not happen for the reasons outlined. Implicit in the permission, which was granted by the Commissioners of Public Works under Part XIII of the Local Government, Planning and Development Regulations 1994, is that the lawn will be restored. The Office of Public Works is committed to the eventual restoration of the lawn to its original state. Like Senator Ross, I am anxious to see that happen but given the situations and constraints which have arisen and the considerations I have outlined, it is difficult to see that happen in the immediate future.

Apart from the restoration of the lawn and the knock-on implications, he raised wider issues which merit consideration.