Vol. 536 No. 5
164 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Finance if he will make a statement on the costs incurred to date on the renovation of Farmleigh and its estate; when he expects it to be open for use, including the promised public access; and the total costs estimated to be incurred for acquisition, renovation and refurbishment of the house and grounds. [14737/01]
A contract was placed by the Commissioners of Public Works in July 2000 for major refurbishment works at Farmleigh House. The budget, which also includes professional fees, statutory charges and fitting out, was £14.72 million. The contractor is on site and completion of the works is due by the end of June 2001. The final cost of the works will not exceed the original budget.
In addition to the main refurbishment contract other works on buildings within the Farmleigh Estate, including some on the house, are being carried out on an ongoing basis. The estimate for the cost of these is £2.2 million approximately up to August 2001.
The estate's utilities are also being upgraded, contracts for which were placed in February 2001. The cost of these works is approximately £1.4 million.
