Five schools and a college being built by a partnership involving the collapsed UK construction firm Carillion should be open by September.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has conceded it will take “a couple of weeks” to resolve the fallout from the collapse of the Carillion construction company, and is causing a knock-on impact on six schools in Ireland.

Works should continue as usual on five schools being built for the Department of Education by a consortium led by one of the UK’s biggest building firms which is in liquidation.

The State has agreed a contract for the development of Ireland’s first healthcare public private partnership (PPP) project. The €140m scheme, part of the Government’s €2.25bn Infrastructure Stimulus Progamme, will provide a network of primary care facilities.

The Department of Education was overcharged by a total of more than €40,000 by two private partner companies for the running of major colleges.

Members of the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee have criticised two state agency executives who take fees for sitting on the board of the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA).

The State has had to write off losses worth tens of million of euro as a result of the collapse or postponement of a number of public-private partnerships (PPP).

The Chief Executive of the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) John Corrigan today set out a roadmap for Ireland’s phased re-entry to the international bond markets over the coming 18 months.

THE Department of Education will spend €70 million less in 2012 than this year on school and college buildings and maintenance, with the emphasis on growing areas, pushing projects at many schools down the priority list.

THE board tasked with developing the new national children’s hospital has slashed by almost 50% the amount it is hoping to raise in charitable donations towards the estimated €650 million cost of the project.

THE board set up to drive the development of the proposed €650 million national children’s hospital does not have the expertise to handle such a crucial and large-scale project, according to its former chair.

It has emerged some of the top earners at key State agencies are giving up their bonuses.

THE chief executives of three key state agencies — including National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) head John Corrigan — are to give-up bonuses worth as much as €850,000.

The British and Irish governments are facing calls today to establish a high-level task force to co-ordinate the planned investment of €100nm in infrastructure north and south of the border.

THE CABINET has given the go-ahead for a plan to inject €3.6 billion of private funding in key investment projects to speed up the completion of schools, health facilities and other investment projects over the next four years.

THE €60 million Cork School of Music public private partnership (PPP) contract should be finalised in weeks, according to the Department of Education.

A REPORT recommending the introduction of privatised speed cameras to reduce road deaths will be considered by the Cabinet today.

MONEY is available to the Government to deliver much-needed infrastructure projects if it so wished, the Dáil Public Accounts Committee heard yesterday.

THE National Development Finance Agency (NDFA), set up to provide cheap sources of capital to local authorities, has arranged 250 million in lending in the past few months.

NOT one proposal has been made to take a slice of the €200 million pie available for investment in infrastructure projects from the State pension fund.

The Government has hinted that it is planning to use controversial public-private partnerships to finance schools, roads and other infrastructure projects.

THE Government will today move to ease its cash crisis by setting up a borrowing agency to raise anything up to €10 billion from the private sector over the next five years.