Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

-----which were being evaluated was such that its Deputies in here said they wanted the project to get done and asked why we were delaying it. The Dunkettle interchange is an example. It is an exceptional piece of work from an engineering perspective on the way into the Jack Lynch Tunnel, but I recall that when we went back to tender to get better value for money compared with the original tender, the cry in the House from the Opposition, including from Sinn Féin Deputies, was that we were delaying it deliberately and they asked us to please get on with it.

As the Deputy well knows, there is the Comptroller and Auditor General. I acknowledge the criticism of the bike shed and do not defend it at all. It should not have happened, in my view. That is why we have the C and AG.

We are spending about €14 billion per annum now in capital infrastructure works and, yes, we do need rigorous, vigilant examination of public expenditure through the public accounts committee and the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General to keep the broader system to heel.

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