Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 26 Feb 2003

Vol. 562 No. 2

Written Answers - Swimming Pool Projects.

Paul Nicholas Gogarty

Question:

124 Mr. Gogarty asked the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism the situation regarding the publication of guidelines on public private partnership which has held up swimming pool projects with local authorities due to the delay in publication. [5689/03]

Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism (Mr. O'Donoghue)

The inter-departmental working group on a public private partnership, PPP, approach to the provision of swimming pools under the local authority swimming pool programme has furnished a report to my Department.

The report has been under consideration in the Department in the context of recent developments in the area of PPPs, including the agreement of a national PPP policy framework, which sets out principles which must underpin the PPP process in Ireland and the State Authorities (Public Private Partnership Arrangements) Act 2002, the primary purpose of which was to remove any doubt as to the authority of State authorities to enter into PPPs.

From 2000, under the current local authority swimming pool programme, a total of 55 applications for assistance, which had to be submitted prior to 31 July 2000, are being processed. Ten have been or will be shortly completed, two are on site and a further 43 are at various stages of development.

To assist the Department is formulating future policy on swimming pools, my Department will undertake an expenditure review of the local authority swimming pool programme this year. This review will examine, among other things, how the programme has worked to date, the benefits which have accrued to the areas where pools have been built through the existing programme, initiatives aimed at managing the current level of indebtedness and amendments, if any, which may be required to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of the programme. In that context and in consultation with the Department of Environment and Local Government, the potential of a public private partnership approach to swimming pool provision by local authorities will be considered.