Vol. 554 No. 5
1281 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Transport the amount of money which has been set aside in 2002 for the development of the metro system for Dublin; the amount which was drawn down; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16698/02]
Subhead C8 of my Department's 2002 Estimates provides €13 million for the expenses of the Railway Procurement Agency, RPA. The allocation covers the cost of salaries and overheads as well as expenditure related to certain of the projects for which the agency has responsibility. The RPA has allocated €5.4 million of this amount for expenditure arising in relation to the Dublin metro project. To date, €1.6 million has been drawn down for the project.
The RPA is, at present, finalising an outline business case for the first phase of the metro, including financial and funding arrangements for the project. I expect this to be submitted to me in the coming weeks. I propose to report to the Government on the matter shortly thereafter.
