Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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Question 277: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if he is satisfied with the manner and pace at which the second bundle of public private partnership schools is progressing; if he would agree with this Deputy that the process has proven to be unacceptably slow; his plans to streamline the process for future PPP bundles; if the final tenders for the second bundle of schools have been received; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23783/09]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy is aware all projects undertaken by my Department must be offered to the market in accordance with EU and National procurement guidelines and are subject to the local authority planning process. In relation to projects being procured via the public private partnership process additional negotiations are required post tender stage to ensure that all aspects of the 25 year contract are agreed. The current challenging financial environment has also impacted on the timeframe for completing the PPP process. Taking all these matters into consideration I am generally satisfied with the progress of the 2nd Schools Bundle.

In order to ensure that projects are delivered as soon as possible I have met with the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) and discussed how the process could be streamlined. A meeting has been arranged between officials in my Department and the NDFA to consider this matter further. In relation to the 2nd Bundle of schools I am pleased to inform the Deputy that tenders for this bundle are due to be returned to the NDFA on 1st July 2009.