Simon Coveney confident on Cork event centre

The latest row between builders BAM and Cork City Council over funding for one of two new pedestrian bridges emerged earlier this month. Planning attached to the plans require development contributions of around €1.6m to be paid for two bridges to service the site.

BAM has appealed this to An Bord Pleanala as it believes the city should pay for both bridges.

“The main issue is planning. We have a plan in place now between the government and Cork City Council to get this done. Funding is not an issue. The process to deliver this project has also been agreed. There is an objector and her objections are entitled to be heard.

“This is not another false dawn. I think it will be done. It will be an incredible asset to the city but we will have to wait for An Bord Pleanala to finalise its planning considerations. Unfortunately, that is a few months away yet. The issue around who pays for bridges and so on, that will be resolved through the Bord Pleanala process.

“I’m confident that a contract can be finalised between Cork City Council and BAM that can provide funding certainty and timelines around building this project once the planning decisions are finalised. We will see it move ahead next year.”

In an interview with the Irish Examiner, Mr Coveney also said he has no interest in leading Fine Gael - if a vacancy were to arise.

Mr Coveney lost out on the role to Leo Varadkar during the party’s leadership race in 2017. But he insists the two men - even though they challenge each other - have a good working relationship.

“We get on well, I think there is a lot of trust there. It is a professional relationship but I think it is also a friendly one. I think Leo has done a very good job. I support him fully. I think he has put a lot of faith in me, in particular on Brexit and other foreign policy issues, in particular on Northern Ireland.

“I think it is an important partnership for the country. The relationship between the Taoiseach and Tánaiste needs to be a very dynamic one. We do challenge each other too and that’s the way it should be,” the Fine Gael deputy leader said.

While Mr Varadkar won the support of the parliamentary party and councillors for the leadership, Mr Coveney won the vote of grassroots members.

Some Fine Gael sources have noted a “frosty relationship” between the two leading party figures in recent times, which may have arisen due to issues around possible Brexit border checks and the decision to demote TD Maria Bailey over ‘swing-gate’.

Asked if he foresaw a vacancy in the leadership of Fine Gael, Mr Coveney replied: “There isn’t a vacancy. And there isn’t going to be anytime soon. Leo is a young and very dynamic leader. He is going to be the leader of the party for the foreseeable future. So it is just not a factor in my consideration.

“We work together for the benefit of the country. I think that relationship, particularly on Brexit, has been a very effective one.”