Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 239: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if the role of a person (details supplied) changed at any point during the life of the expert committee charged with site selection for the proposed new prison complex to replace Mountjoy; if his role was truly restricted to that of adviser throughout; and if he was acting purely as an adviser when he helped procure the site at Thornton ultimately chosen by the committee, by negotiating the price and arranging for surveys of the site prior to bringing the proposal to the committee on 18 January 2005. [8074/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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The person in question did not procure the site at Thornton. The site was offered to the Irish Prison Service. The role of the person in question did not change during the life of the expert committee. He acted as an adviser and liaised with the owners-agents of a number of the sites regarding price and other matters.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 240: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason it was considered necessary for the new prison complex planned for north County Dublin to be within eight kilometres of the M50 when a site within a similar distance of the M1 would have been just as convenient. [8075/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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The Director General of the Irish Prison Service was of the view that there would be major operational difficulties if a new prison complex for the Dublin area was too far from the city, the other prisons, the courts and major access routes. In his view such operational difficulties would most likely arise if a site was further than eight kilometres outside the M50.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 241: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason development land price was paid for farmland in the case of the purchase of a site for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy. [8076/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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The price paid was the amount required to acquire a site suitable for the development of a new prison facility to allow the replacement of the Mountjoy Prison complex.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 242: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason environmental impact was not a weighted selection criterion for the new super prison complex to replace Mountjoy, now planned for north County Dublin. [8077/05]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 243: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason community impact, zoning and planning were combined as a single weighting factor in the site selection process for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy, thus giving an average of only 20-500 for each of these distinct factors. [8078/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 242 and 243 together.

I understand that the committee considered and agreed what it considered to be the most relevant criteria in selecting a site and apportioned weightings on the basis of their judgment as to what was the relevant importance of each criterion.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 244: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason the expert committee charged with site selection for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy did not visit the proposed site at Thornton, north County Dublin, in advance of making its recommendation to the Minister, considering its huge impact on the environment and community concerned. [8079/05]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 245: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason the expert committee charged with site selection for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy rushed its decision to select the Thornton site, which was introduced, considered and selected in a single meeting. [8080/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 244 and 245 together.

Two members of the committee did visit the site but the committee did not consider it necessary for every member of the committee to visit all the sites which were considered suitable particularly when aerial photographs, detailed maps and engineering surveys were available.

I do not accept that the committee rushed its consideration of the site in question. The site was offered to the Irish Prison Service in December 2004. An engineering, planning and technical survey was carried out and the committee had all the information it required to assess the site on the basis of the agreed criteria at its meeting of 18 January 2005.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 246: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he has visited the site selected for the new prison complex in north County Dublin; if not the reason therefor; if he will visit the site and when; and if his attention has been drawn to the impact this development will have on the environment and community of one of the last rural areas in County Dublin. [8081/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I have not visited the site in question. The impact of the development on the local area cannot be fully assessed until the plans for the complex have been finalised.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 247: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he will meet with the Rolestown-St. Margaret's action group. [8082/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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If a delegation from the group in question wishes to come in and meet with me and set out the issues it wishes to discuss, I would be happy to meet with the members.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 248: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason he did not anticipate any legal action over the site selected for the new prison complex planned for north County Dublin to replace Mountjoy. [8083/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I am not aware of any legal proceedings initiated with regard to the site selected for a new prison facility to enable the replacement of the Mountjoy Prison complex nor am I aware of any grounds which would successfully support such an action. I am conscious that any major development by the State may, at some stage, be subject to legal challenge.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 249: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason the selection criteria for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy changed again at the last meeting, specifically with regard to the proximity to public transportation, which had been a more important factor up to the meeting of 18 January 2005; and the reason all sites were previously ruled out because they had scored badly on the proximity to public transport criteria were not reconsidered positively in view of the proposal to run a private shuttle bus service to the new prison. [8084/05]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 250: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason the proposed site at Leixlip was ruled out by the expert committee during the process of site selection for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy. [8085/05]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 251: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason the proposed site at Balbriggan was ruled out by the expert committee during the process of site selection for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy. [8086/05]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 252: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason the proposed site at Abbottstown was ruled out by the expert committee during the process of site selection for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy, when it appears to meet all the selection criteria exceptionally well and is already in state ownership. [8088/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 249 to 252, inclusive, together.

The weighting for the selection criterion relating to public transport was not changed once it was agreed by the committee at its meeting on 9 July 2004. In any event as can be seen from the reports of the committee, it transpires that no site was ruled out solely because of failure to meet the public transport criterion because all such sites also failed on other criteria.

The site at Balbriggan was originally ruled out on cost grounds at the meeting of 9 July 2004 but was reconsidered at the meeting of 16 September 2004. It was ruled out again at that stage because it was too far from the M50. The site at Leixlip was marked in detail at the meeting of 15 July 2004 but did not make it into the top five sites. It is also further than eight kilometres from the M50 and did not fall within the revised guidelines agreed at the committee's meeting of 16 September 2004.

No site at Abbottstown was assessed by the committee. I understand that the land in question was under consideration for other uses.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 253: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if the expert committee charged with site selection for the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy are aware that from Thornton it takes longer to get to Blanchardstown Hospital than to Beaumont Hospital. [8089/05]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 254: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the response times for the police and fire brigade in the area of the proposed site of the new prison complex planned to replace Mountjoy in north County Dublin; and if the expert committee were aware of these times prior to making their decision on the Thornton site. [8090/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 253 and 254 together.

A possible maximum of 15 out of a total 500 marks was allowed for the availability of emergency services. When reviewing this criterion, I understand that the committee took into account the existing location of services as well as planned road developments that may be completed when the new prison facility is likely to come into operation. The committee did not try to assess precise timings in different traffic conditions.