Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

I welcome the Minister's constructive response and I would be happy to engage with him. If he is to engage in a programme of capital expenditure during a downturn in the construction industry, which could be very positive and beneficial generally, would he consider using the Planning and Development (Strategic Infrastructure) Act to accelerate the planning? Many applications are stuck in the planning process at present. There is nothing more strategically important than the education system for our knowledge economy.

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