Leinster House: no parking

MORE than €130,000 a year will have to be paid out to provide extra parking for politicians who have been forced out of their normal spaces.

The unfortunate TDs and senators have been shunted from the grounds of Leinster House because of a major restoration project to the roof of the National Gallery.

Fifty-two of the country's politicians are affected according to the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission, and all will be catered for in nearby spaces.

The cost of the move is likely to be in excess of €132,184 for each year in which the work is taking place, based on the most recent figures. The work is expected to take two years.

According to the Office of Public Works, the average price paid out for a parking space in the Dublin region is €2,542 a year. A spokesman for the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission said: "They have been given spaces in neighbouring buildings. The spaces involved are from the Office of Public Works portfolio and it would be up to them to say exactly where they are."

At a recent meeting of the Houses of the Oireachtas, it was confirmed that the parking spaces will be sourced prior to work taking place this month. The Oireachtas said they were agreeable to allowing the work go ahead on condition the area affected was restored as a car park.