Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the committee for the opportunity to present the 2022 Estimate for the Department of Transport and for programme A of the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications.

For 2022, the budget has been restructured to make it easier to monitor and report on how funds are being invested. The former land programme is now split into three new programmes, namely, programme A, sustainable mobility, active travel and greenways; programme B, carbon reduction and public transport; and programme C, road safety and road networks. Programme D, civil aviation, and programme E, maritime safety and transport, remain unchanged.

The set of transport Estimates before the committee provide an overall gross allocation to the Department of Transport of €3.432 billion, which constitutes €885 million in current expenditure and €2.547 billion in capital. Core expenditure has increased by 7% in current expenditure and by just under 1% in capital, in line with the capital ceiling for 2022 agreed as part of the negotiations underpinning the revised national development plan, NDP.

Covid emergency expenditure has fallen by 46%, in line with the gradual recovery in the economy. Supports are still provided, where deemed necessary, to protect public services. In total, an additional €238 million in emergency funding is provided in 2022.

This year will see a number of significant milestones as major transport projects continue to advance and the number of active travel schemes in the pipeline continues to grow. In the budget, we secured additional funding to assist our investment agencies to continue to scale up to deliver on projects within their remit. The responsibility for greenways has been transferred to Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, which is in a position to utilise its knowledge and expertise to advance interurban networks. In addition, legislation is now before the Oireachtas which will, if passed, make it easier for local authorities to experiment with active travel proposals.

Turning to active travel and greenways, €358.6 million is allocated under this programme. Major urban projects to commence construction include the Clontarf to Amiens Street route in Dublin and the MacCurtain Street scheme in Cork. In all, an estimated 1,200 active travel projects will be funded. Some 170 schools are participating in the current round of the safe routes to schools programme.

Construction will continue on significant greenway projects, including Clifden to Recess and Midleton to Youghal. In 2022, an estimated 150 km of greenway will be under construction and 900 km in pre-construction. As bicycles take up, on average, one tenth of the space of a car, cost a fraction of a car to purchase and use, and properly designed networks have much higher capacity to carry people to their destinations than congested roads, their impact over short journeys simply cannot be underestimated.

Under programme B, sustainable mobility, carbon reduction and public transport, approximately €1.475 billion has been allocated, €102 million of which is allocated to carbon reduction measures, including supporting the continued rate of growth in the number of electric vehicles, EVs. Under this programme a number of schemes are funded, including the very successful electric small public service vehicle, ESPSV, scheme and the EV grant scheme for private cars.

Some €780 million is allocated to public transport investment. This year will see a number of key milestones in public transport projects presently under development. Just before Christmas, the preliminary business case for DART+ was approved, with DART+ West the first project scheduled to enter the planning system. The contract for the DART fleet was signed, a major step in facilitating the increase in fleet capacity. In the coming months I expect to bring the preliminary business cases for BusConnects and MetroLink to the Cabinet. The Cork commuter rail project, part-funded through the EU's national recovery and resilience programme, will also be progressed. Some €538.8 million is allocated to public service obligation, PSO, services. Included in this allocation, emergency funding of €205 million will continue to support PSO services and to remediate the impacts of the Covid-19 emergency measures. New routes will be rolled out under the BusConnects, rural transport and Connecting Ireland network plans, and the new youth travel card scheme will be rolled out.

Under programme C, road safety and road networks, approximately €1.423 billion is allocated. This funding will maintain and renew national, regional and local road surfaces; assist in undertaking safety works and bridge maintenance and rehabilitation; meet our contractual obligations under public private partnerships that delivered parts of our motorway network; fund the construction of new national, regional and local roads; and fund vital safety-related services.

Construction continues on a number of major roads, including the Dunkettle interchange and the N5 Westport to Turlough road. The Listowel bypass and the N59 Moycullen bypass will commence construction in 2022. Projects with planning approval that will continue to progress towards construction phase include the N28 Ringaskiddy road and the N6 Galway ring road. Some €825 million has been allocated to protection and renewal. As for road safety, as well as funding for driver licensing services, additional funding has been provided to the Medical Bureau of Road Safety to support its vital work in detecting drug and alcohol misuse by drivers.

Under the civil aviation programme, €67.417 million is allocated to the sector. As the sector continues to recover, the amount of funding in emergency supports is significantly down in 2022. The regional airports programme provides targeted supports to regional airports that handle fewer than 1 million passengers per annum. Cork and Shannon airports are eligible to participate in the programme in 2022 alongside Knock and Donegal airports. Funding of €5 million is available in the event that customer refund or repatriation is required following the failure of a travel or tour operator. Some €10 million is available in additional travel trade industry supports, and €11 million is allocated to fund services such as air accident insurance and membership of key international organisations.

Under programme E, maritime transport and safety, €108.81 million is allocated for 2022. Most of that funding is directed to the Irish Coast Guard, and the main cost in this regard relates to the search and rescue helicopter contract. The programme also funds the Commissioners of Irish Lights, which operates buoys and lighthouses and keeps seafarers and their cargoes safe while in Irish waters. We also cover various administrative costs associated with the Irish Maritime Administration. We will continue the Coast Guard building programme to ensure the volunteers have adequate facilities for their operations and equipment. We are investing in IT infrastructure to enable the teams to enhance further how they work together. Some €1 million has been provided to Wexford County Council to assist in the cost of environmental remediation works at Rosslare Europort as part of the transfer of the port to management by the local authority.

I now turn to the connectivity and communications delivery programme of the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. The aim of the programme is to deliver world-class connectivity and communications. Over €255 million is being allocated to the programme in 2022, consisting of €19.95 million in current expenditure and €235.2 million in capital expenditure. The current expenditure relates mainly to the Department's digital economy programmes and the National Cyber Security Centre.

The biggest item of capital expenditure within this programme is the national broadband plan, at €225 million. The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of high-capacity and reliable broadband to ensure people, communities and businesses throughout Ireland can avail of the opportunities presented by the digital economy. Despite the unprecedented challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, National Broadband Ireland has continued the roll-out of the new high-speed fibre-optic broadband network under the national broadband plan, NBP. Design work is complete or ongoing in target townlands across every county in Ireland, with almost 292,000 premises surveyed or undergoing survey as of 14 January. More than 34,000 premises have been passed and retailers are now able to resell high-speed broadband services via the National Broadband Ireland, NBI, network to those premises. In excess of 54,000 premises are able to order or pre-order a high-speed broadband service, and nearly 5,500 premises are now connected.

The 2022 Estimate includes €3 million for Eircode postcodes. Since their launch in 2015, their usage has continued to grow and they are now used widely among the public, businesses and the public sector.

The Estimates also include €5.1 million operational funding for the National Cyber Security Centre and €3.5 million for the National Digital Research Centre. The National Cyber Security Centre is the central cybersecurity authority in the State, its key roles being to monitor and to respond to cybersecurity incidents and to manage and to share intelligence relating to threats to network and information security. In line with the Government decision of July 2021, the 2022 pay Estimate for the programme includes an allocation to increase staffing at the National Cyber Security Centre by 20 to 45 in 2022. The National Cyber Security Centre will continue to develop its incident response, threat intelligence, monitoring and research and development capabilities.

I am happy to take any questions on the 2022 Estimates of expenditure for the services provided by both Departments under this programme.