Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

My intention is to ensure a smooth transition and, as I said in my reply, we are working towards continuity. If everything is not finalised by 1 January, we will have to make some interim arrangement because there is no point in closing the facilities only to reopen them at a later date. I will try to avoid that situation if at all possible.

It is important to point out that what is involved here is a cocktail of funding. The CDVEC and South Dublin County Council will provide some funding. The funding being given by the Department would not cover all the staff requirements and overheads of the facilities. The best thing for all parties to do is to determine where to go from here in the context of the constraints of the programme under which the Department is operating because we must live within those agreed constraints. The parties must take account of the total resources that will be available through charges for use of the facilities, contributions from other statutory agencies and local authorities and the contribution from my Department. My hope is that once the management has a clear picture of the shape of the funding package available, it can work out satisfactory interim arrangements in consultation with all stakeholders. That level of final detail has yet to be worked out but with good will, it is possible to get the scheme to work to everyone's benefit.

Transition is always difficult. My Department has examined a suite of possible solutions to this problem. It is somewhat constrained, however, in that it must work within the parameters of agreed programmes. We cannot simply decide a project is a great cause and create a programme to fund it. If we can get from where we are to where we want to go, we will have a very sustainable model and in three years' time we will not face this problem. I hope people can work together to resolve any transitional difficulties that arise.