Averil Power (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I raise an issue I have raised on several occasions in the House over the past 16 months, namely, the plight of the Priory Hall residents in Donaghmede. These are families who, as the Minister of State will know, were forced to move out of their homes overnight in October or November of 2011. They have now just come through their second Christmas in temporary accommodation, still living with uncertainty about the future. All that is certain is that they are not going back to Priory Hall. The building was not fit for purpose when they left it and is now worse because it has been abandoned for the past 16 months. However, the residents are still waiting for a long-term solution and still wondering what they will do about their mortgages and when the millstone of their Priory Hall apartments will be taken from around their necks.

There has been a resolution process in place for several months. I am trying to bring together the stakeholders to agree on a long-term solution. I tabled this Adjournment debate to ask the Minister of State if there is progress to be reported. I hope there is, because the continuing uncertainty is a nightmare for the families. It is also crazy from the State's point of view because the longer this goes on, the greater the cost to the State. Before Christmas, it was reported that Dublin City Council had spent ¤2 million on Priory Hall since the residents were evacuated. That relates to the cost of short-term accommodation and the costs of securing a derelict building that should, at this stage, be knocked down. I want to raise the issue with the Minister of State to ensure it continues to be a Government priority and, hopefully, to bring a greater sense of urgency to the resolution process. Does the Minister of State have news to report and when we will finally see a solution for the residents of Priory Hall?