Before we proceed, I thank the Office of Public Works for the splendid job they have done in creating this temporary Chamber for us. Our thanks go to everybody involved and particularly to the architect, Mr. Geoffrey Johnson, and his staff. They worked tremendously hard. They worked here on Saturday and Sunday to get the House in order. I know Senators very much regret having to move from the Chamber. I am sure the work of repairing the Chamber is well in hand and I will continue to keep in very close touch with the progress of the workers.
Seanad Chamber Repairs.
I join with the Chair in congratulating the workers but when is it hoped that we will return to the Seanad Chamber?
There is no reason that I can see to change the original date.
Would that be in a year or two?
It is in the report circulated. It will be in October 1987.
I join with the Chair's expression of appreciation for the job that has been done here. I was intrigued by his comment that it was necessary to work over the weekend to achieve what has been achieved here, bearing in mind that there was a ten week period during which this work could have been accomplished. In fact, people were working here to a very late hour last night, moving in certain pieces of furniture and locating seats in what is little more than a large room. If any of us were to endure a wait of ten weeks in our homes for the movement of furniture to a room of similar size, I wonder what our reaction would be. A satisfactory job has been done within limits but my concern is growing at the absence of progress in the repair of the roof of the Seanad Chamber. I understand that as late as last evening investigatory work was still taking place. To put that in context, it is now 16 months since this investigatory work began on that ceiling. In layman's terms, we are asking a competent contractor or an architect to trace the extent of a crack in the brickwork. Can we honestly, as legislators in this House, stand over a 16 month investigation of a crack in the brickwork in a two storey building. It defies logic that that amount of time has been devoted to it and absolutely no progress has been made in repair work. Repair work will not commence until the investigation is completed — the investigation of a crack in the brickwork in a two storey building. I am alarmed and concerned that this situation has developed and is being allowed to develop further. I ask the Cathaoirleach to reassure this House that when we reassemble next week we will have some sort of a reasonable timetable. I am concerned that we can justify to the taxpayers a period of 16 months to try to arrive at the end of a crack of possibly 30 feet long in brickwork.
I agree with what the Cathaoirleach has said in thanking the Office of Public Works for having provided us with this mini-Seanad for the time being. It is not fair of Senator Howard to say that they have spent ten weeks putting in seats and desks here. We all know that there was a lot of other work involved including quite a lot of electrical work that one cannot see under the floor. We are always inclined to knock the Office of Public Works. They may be slow but they do a good job and any job they ever did had not to be redone. I do not see why work on this House should be singled out by Senator Howard as being a job which is taking long years to complete. Maybe the Office of Public Works cannot afford to employ the number of people who should be employed here. We should be thankful for what we have, and I hope there will be no further criticism of the Office of Public Works in this House.