Latest news with #KevinBoxerMoran
RTÉ News
2 days ago
- RTÉ News
Castletown House group agree to trial for OPW vehicles
A group that had been objecting to vehicles entering Castletown House in Kildare via a traditional pedestrian entrance on Lime Avenue have agreed to two weeks trial of service vehicles entering the site this way. The 'Save Castletown Gate Protector' group has agreed to a maximum of two to three vehicles entering the site before 11am on weekdays only. They said the agreement was reached after a positive meeting with Minister of State for the OPW Kevin Boxer Moran who they said also agreed to restoring dawn to dusk opening hours on Friday 4 July. They said while there are still a number of issues to explore and resolve they see the move as a "positive first step". A dispute about access has meant that Castletown House has been largely closed to the public for 19 months and service vehicles have not been able to access the site since Christmas. Over the May bank holiday weekend, damage was caused to vehicles and facilities used by the Office of Public Works to access the site. Three people were arrested yesterday in connection with a number of criminal damage incidents at Castletown House. The estimated cost of the damage was in the region of €400,000. The three – a man in his 30s and two juveniles – were arrested following a search operation at a number of properties in the county. The man was charged in connection with the incidents and appeared at the Courts of Criminal Justice yesterday afternoon. The two male juveniles were released from custody pending referral to the Juvenile Youth Diversion Programme. A file will be prepared for the DPP. Gardaí said that investigations are ongoing.
RTÉ News
16-05-2025
- Business
- RTÉ News
OPW minister says he welcomes bike shelter report findings
The Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works has said that a report into the Leinster House bike shelter has "come out with findings that I welcome and want to recommend". A report into the shelter found that there was an "absence of some fundamental good practices", including a value for money assessment, ahead of the project's construction. The conclusion is made in a Deloitte audit for the Office of Public Works. The audit was sought by the Government and the OPW after Opposition outcry over the bike shelter which cost €336,000. The costs include €284,000 spent on construction and installation, €10,000 on contract administration and €4,000 on archeological services. Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Kevin Boxer Moran said a new head of internal audit has now been appointed, which was one of the key findings of the report. He said he is "very much focused on delivering value for money". "I think it's important that we show that we're up front and clear in how we go forward in the OPW. "We get a lot of the big projects on budget, on time and right, but where the report has found a weakness is in projects from €500,000 down," he said. Minister Moran said he will deliver on the recommendations in the report and deliver on projects going forward. He said there is "a massive budget" and he wants to ensure it is spent with value for money. "Putting our hands up, we acknowledge there's issues, but we move on and we've to learn from them" he said. "We've dealt with most of the recommendations from the report." The minister said he "can assure the public" that value for money will be carried out from here on in and that documentation will be checked and completed. He said he wanted to ensure that the recommendations of the report were being implemented before it was published.
