Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 7 Oct 2003

Vol. 571 No. 4

Schools of Music.

Mr. Allen

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for allowing us to raise this important issue once again. My immediate family have been involved with the Cork School of Music for the past 24 years, with children starting violin at age four. In May I visited the temporary premises in Moore's Hotel for the Cork School of Music and saw students and teachers working in poor and overcrowded conditions. They were, however, full of hope that, despite numerous delays, the announcement on a new school of music would have been made by now. We were given unofficial assurances that an announcement would have been made long before now.

It was appalling, however, to see students and teachers in the cold weather yesterday protesting the lack of a decision from the Government. I read the little book of horrors that is the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and he sets out an appalling vista of mismanagement, indifference and wasting of taxpayers' money in this project.

Promises were made before the general election in 2002. The then Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Martin, on more than one occasion announced that a new Cork School of Music would proceed immediately and be ready for the time when Cork would become European City of Culture in 2005. The election came, the promises were broken and we are still waiting for the school. I call on the Government to make up for this deceit of the people of Cork and Munster by sanctioning the school.

EUROSTAT has been blamed and other excuses given. Every time we table a Dáil question, we are told a decision is imminent. What is the Minister's definition of imminent? I hope the Minister will give a specific date for approval of the school.

Mr. Stanton

This is the third time I have raised this issue of major concern throughout Munster. I was told today that the rent paid to date since July 2001 is over €1.5 million, money down the drain. The costs have increased from €12 million to €200 million. It appears that one side of the Government did not know what the other was doing in this matter. The Department of Finance finally got involved and said there was no money left and the project could not go ahead.

While this continues, the students, teachers and staff are suffering. Cork has a fantastic tradition of music spanning the decades. We all hoped that with Cork being designated the European City of Culture in 2005, this would be the centrepiece of culture in Munster and Ireland. The Government has let Cork and the rest of the country down . We want a decision one way or the other, but I hope the building will be allowed to start. We have been told it is imminent but there has been speculation in the press that the building will be on a smaller scale, which probably means going through the planning process again, with further delays as a result.

We raised this issue nine months ago and again six months ago. The Government is still dithering and cannot make up its mind and come to a decision. The Departments of Education and Science and Finance did not get their act together from day one and that is why we are in such a mess. Promises were made and broken. That is not good enough for the people of Cork or the nation.

This is a major project the cultural significance of which cannot be overstated. Perhaps the Minister will have good news for us tonight and one decision might be announced in this House. The Minister might make history by making a decision in the Dáil. It would be historic as far as the Government is concerned. We await that decision with hope.

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mary Coughlan)

As the Deputy and Deputy Allen know, it is bad politics to make an announcement on behalf of a colleague. The Minister for Education and Science has spoken on this issue in the House on a number of occasions and discussed it with the Joint Committee on Education and Science. The project was launched in July 2000 and a total of 12 consortia expressed interest in bidding for it. After initial presentations and interviews, a final short-list of three bidders was issued with the invitation to negotiate documentation in November 2000. Detailed evaluation of the final bids was undertaken in February 2001 and Jarvis Projects Limited was selected as the preferred bidder the following month. Department of Education and Science officials and advisers entered into a period of intense discussion with Jarvis Projects Limited with a view to reaching financial closure on the project.

During this period Jarvis Projects Limited, under the terms of the project, sought and received planning permission for the project from Cork City Council. However, a planning appeal against the grant of permission was submitted to An Bord Pleanála. During the period of the appeal, work on the project was suspended and was only resumed after An Bord Pleanála rejected the appeal and granted planning permission for the development on 24 December 2001.

When the project was first launched the economic climate in the country was very healthy. Since then, however, as the committee is well aware—

Mr. Stanton

What committee?

Mary Coughlan

—economic circumstances have changed significantly, so much so that the question of affordability of each capital project must be examined very closely in relation to overall Government expenditure.

This brings me to the question of the general Government balance. This is the critical measure of what can be accommodated within our obligations under the stability and growth pact of the Maastricht treaty. Under EU rules, where projects are financed on a deferred payment basis by the private sector, the capital value of such projects is a charge on the general Government balance over the construction phase.

Mr. Stanton

The Minister referred in her speech to a committee. Which committee is this? This is a rehashed reply that has already been made somewhere else.

Mary Coughlan

A EUROSTAT group is currently reviewing the accounting rules on this issue. A standing committee established by my colleague, the Minister for Finance, will also advise on the general Government balance implications of private sector financed projects. EUROSTAT has ruled on the GGB implications of the bundle of five post-primary schools and found that the capital cost must be reckoned for GGB purposes. While EUROSTAT has not specifically ruled on the Cork School of Music project, the prudent approach is to adopt a working assumption for the moment that the cost of the project will have to be counted for GGB purposes.

In recent months the Government's priority has been to ensure the competitiveness of our economy and to respond effectively in managing the economic changes. With the limited resources now available for major infrastructural projects it is imperative that all such projects are critically reviewed to ensure that the best value for money is achieved and that we prioritise our needs to the funding available.

Ultimately the final approval for the Cork School of Music will be a matter for the Government and consideration of it will be based on a thorough assessment of affordability of the project in the context of the competing demands on the likely capital funding envelopes and taking into account the issues surrounding the general Government balance.