Seanad report: Margaret Cox (FF) said that, while it was perfectly legitimate for the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) to appoint an advisory group to deal with the sale of the Great Southern Hotels group, it was absolutely scandalous to set finality to the decision before the advice was given.
"We should consider what is the best strategy," she told the House. "It is not appropriate, I believe, to simply dump this family silver for short-term commercial gain."
Tom Morrissey (PD) said the DAA had set out where it wished to go. It was outlandish that a brand like the GSH group, in premium locations, should be making a loss. The Government did not wish to be the parent of an unwanted child, allowing it to wilt and eventually to be put up for a fire sale.
It was time that this unhealthy flower was allowed to bloom in the sunshine of a thriving economy. Shane Ross (Ind) said he detected a certain difference between the Government parties on the issue. No decision was likely to be made until after the next general election, unless the House forced the Government's hand.
Paul Coghlan (FG) said the message had come across that the green light for a sale had been given; he wondered if the hotels would be put on the market collectively or individually.
The leader of the House, Mary O'Rourke, said Mr Morrissey had given the impression that the cabinet had decided to acquiesce to a sale. But no such decision had been made. She told Mr Coghlan "the greatest guarantee" was that the Taoiseach holidayed regularly in one of the hotels, and two of them were in the constituency of Minister for Tourism John O'Donoghue.
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A single point toll on the M50 would replace the existing West-Link toll arrangement in 2008, Minister for Transport Martin Cullen said. The new toll would be index linked, would fund phase 2 of the M50 upgrade, the cost of free-flow tolls and the payment of compensation to National Toll Roads.
Mr Cullen was responding to a Fine Gael motion condemning the Government "for its failure to provide any solution to the appalling congestion on the M50, until 2008 at the earliest".
Mr Cullen said his department was preparing proposals for amending legislation to strengthen the enforcement provisions in relation to the non-payment of a toll in a barrier-free environment. Phase 2 of the upgrade scheme was being procured as a Public Private Partnership contract. He said concerns had been raised in relation to the additional volumes of heavy goods vehicles which would be using the M50, following the opening of the Dublin Port Tunnel "this summer".
Derek McDowell (Lab) said it was clear that if the heavy goods vehicle management plan for the port tunnel was to work, a system would have to be put in place for the raising of the M50 toll plaza barriers from April or June.