Dundrum hotel contract
Deputy McGrath accused the Government of betraying Dundrum residents by signing a hotel contract despite local objections and court cases. The Tánaiste said he did not have the information to hand, but would ask the relevant Minister of State or Minister to reply directly.
The shocking treatment of the community and people of Dundrum in County Tipperary is ongoing by the Government, as it was by the previous Government. The Tánaiste met Mrs. O'Dwyer and Andrea Crowe in Clonmel during the election and he listened to them. He also assured me here after the election, when he was appointed as Tánaiste, that a pause was being put on the use of hotels. Now we find a contract has been signed, by some faceless and nameless official, with a Spanish company with a book value of €120 while there are three serious court cases going on at the High Court on ownership and the carry on in the premises. The Government has signed a €20 million contract for 277 IPAS people to be placed in a village where there were 220 people according to the most recent census. The Government's guidelines state it cannot change the demographics by more than 5%. This is a shocking vista and it is continuing. What happened to the pause the Tánaiste told me was on it? Why was the contract signed before the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, and the Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, took charge of this situation from the Department of integration? This is shocking. One doctor has written to the Tánaiste.
Comment on this
Everybody has been talking about it. The people of Dundrum have a peaceful protest there. They are good, decent people who looked after the Ukrainian refugees very well. This continuing blackguarding of a community is shameful.
Comment on this
I thank Deputy McGrath. I did indeed meet Mrs. O'Dwyer and others in Clonmel and I share Deputy McGrath's view of meeting good, decent people. I do not have the information available to me here but I will ask either the Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, or the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, to come back to Deputy McGrath directly on this issue in Dundrum.