Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 1 July 2004
13 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism if the report to the chairman of the national conference centre steering group by the assessment panel considering the four submissions for the provision of the national conference centre is complete; if he has received a copy of this report; the latest situation with regard to the development of the conference centre in view of this report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19728/04]
View answer27 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism if he will be in a position to make a decision with regard to the provision of a national conference centre before the end of 2004; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19705/04]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 13 and 27 together.
I understand that the national conference centre, NCC, steering group met on 21 June last and considered the reports of the NCC financial and economic standing/technical ability panel and the NCC site assessment panel. In line with the recommendations set out in the two reports, I am informed the steering group has taken decisions as to the qualification of candidates and their sites and has so advised the Office of Public Works which will notify candidates accordingly.
In the meantime, as I informed the House on 25 May last, the Office of Public Works and its advisers are continuing to work on the preparation of the very detailed documentation required before that next stage can be initiated. In addition, consultants have been engaged by the OPW to undertake a public sector benchmarking exercise, as required by the Department of Finance's interim guidelines for the provision of infrastructure and capital investments through public private partnerships. I am told this is likely to take some weeks to complete.
The timeframe prepared following the Government's decision to secure the provision of a national conference centre, and which envisaged that a final decision from Government could be secured in the autumn, was an indicative timeframe, based on the information and assumptions available at the time. The procurement process that was subsequently undertaken is, as one would expect for a project of this scale, necessarily complex. In addition to the procedural requirements of the PPP process itself, the development of the detailed design and contract documentation is demanding, with details requiring careful scrutiny and consideration.
As I previously informed the House, it is now unlikely that the procurement process will be sufficiently advanced to facilitate a Government decision in the autumn and while I would hope to be in that position before the end of the year, given the complexity of the process, I am reluctant to be categorical. My priority is to have this project brought to a conclusion at the earliest possible date. However, it is important that the relevant procedures and guidelines pertaining to the process are closely observed and that nothing is done that might jeopardise its successful conclusion.
