Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)

I thank the Minister of State for his reply but it is just not good enough. I hate to repeat myself but this station was announced ten years ago. Work started almost three years ago and yet the people of Bailieborough were again told to wait. In 2023, they were told to wait and again in 2025. Now it will be 2026 but the Minister of State is still being vague. It will be early 2026, not even quarter 1 or quarter 2. It would laughable if it were not so serious, particularly for the gardaí who are working out of that station in substandard conditions. We have been told it is complex, which the Minister of State said again, that it is conservation work and supply chain issues.

People are fed up hearing why it cannot be done and just want to see it finished. The current station is falling apart. Morale among the gardaí has been hit hard and the community feels ignored. It is deeply unfair to expect front-line gardaí to work out of these conditions while announcements keep coming from Dublin with no follow-up. The least the Government and the Department can do is be honest with us. Do not tell us that it will be quarter 1, 2 or 3 only to push it out further next year. That is unfair and erodes public trust. Is the Minister of State committing to having works completed in quarter 1 of 2026?