Pádraic McCormack
Question:111 Mr. McCormack asked the Minister for Education and Science the overall cost of the extra additions announced in May 2003 to the 2003 school building programme. [15825/03]
Written Answers. - Schools Building Projects.
I published the 2003 schools building programme in January this year in order to provide the maximum amount of information on projects in planning and at construction to students, parents, teachers, boards of management, managers and all other interested parties. The programme clearly reserved €10.7 million as a contingency fund to cover urgently required accommodation, health and safety works and other urgent works which arise during the course of the normal primary and post-primary school year. My Department has been allocating funding in respect of these works as these emergencies arise.
I want all schools to know how the contingency fund is being spent. The 2003 school building programme was updated on the Department's webs ite in May to reflect these allocations. In addition, the update included details in respect of urgently required temporary classroom accommodation and a new pilot initiative aimed at facilitating primary schools wishing to put a permanent solution in place to meet their immediate classroom accommodation needs. The full cost of these projects is estimated at €10 million with an expected 2003 drawdown at this stage of approximately €6.5 million.