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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Thursday, 24 Oct 2002

Vol. 556 No. 2

Written Answers. - Land Lease.

John McGuinness

Ceist:

140 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if the owner of lands at Dublin Road, Kilkenny, is in receipt of payments from his Department on foot of a lease established with this person arising from an order placed on the site by his Department in 2002; if so, the amount of each payment made; if the legal action being taken by the local community was envisaged in drawing up the lease; if this action provides the Government with an acceptable reason to terminate the lease; if a contract has been signed with a construction company to develop the site and provide the temporary accommodation; if so, the name of the company; the date on which the contract was signed; the cost of the project; the cost to the State of the legal action to date; the projected cost to the end of the action; his views on whether this process represented value for money for the State, in view of other actions taken by other communities which are as yet not concluded; if he will re-evaluate his Department's proposals, withdraw from legal action or consider submitting the proposals to the local authority for planning permission which is a system more open and transparent than the one he has chosen; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19631/02]

The Commissioners of Public Works, acting on behalf of the Reception and Integration Agency, which is responsible, inter alia, for meeting the accommodation needs of asylum seekers, has put a licensing agreement in place with the landowner in question to cover the period of construction of a system-built accommodation centre for up to 250 asylum seekers, including children.

A lease for a period of four years and nine months has been agreed from the date of the completion of the accommodation facility and a further licensing agreement for four months has been agreed at the end of the lease arrangement to allow for the removal of the buildings.

I have been informed by the commissioners that the annual lease-licence amount is €184,000 and that it is estimated that the total cost of the project will be €8.34 million. They have further advised me that a contract was signed with Glenbeigh Construction in March 2002 for completion of the project.

The development envisaged at this site is currently the subject of litigation in the High Court and, in the circumstances, it would be inappropriate for me to make any further comment.

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