Fianna Fáil has pulled off a last-minute election promise by setting up a system of funding for a Sligo road project which is unprecedented in the State.
A statement from the Department of the Environment has confirmed that "an exceptional arrangement" has been sanctioned, guaranteeing that it will pay the interest on a €5 million loan secured by Sligo County Council.
The Sligo Inner Relief Road was one of a number of road projects around the State set to be delayed because of shortfalls in allocations from the National Roads Authority (NRA) in February. This new arrangement effectively means that the NRA decision has been overturned by Government, even though it is the body with legal responsibility for making such funding allocations.
A senior official from Sligo County Council told The Irish Times last week that he did not believe the arrangement could be sanctioned because it would be unprecedented in the State.
It would mean that the Government would end up paying a higher rate of interest on this €5 million because local authorities could not borrow at the same rate as government. However, this week just before the publication of the local paper, the Sligo Champion, on Wednesday afternoon the Department confirmed that it would pay the interest on the loan.
A spokesman for the Department of the Environment said yesterday it was not envisaged that this arrangement would be replicated anywhere else. He said there were "a unique set of circumstances" in relation to the Sligo Inner Relief Road project, because of delays over many years and the amount of archaeological investigation that had to be done.
Since the NRA announced in February that it was allocating only €1.27 million for the road in this year's Budget, effectively meaning that it would fall behind schedule by at least a year, Fianna Fáil has faced an angry reaction.
A Fianna Fáil candidate, Dr Jimmy Devins, sad throughout the election campaign that the arrangement would be sanctioned as both the Minister for the Environment, Noel Mr Dempsey, and the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, had given him personal assurances.