Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

This review maintains existing planned levels of health capital investment into the medium term at €390 million a year or €1.95 billion over the period of the plan. This investment will allow for the replacement of the Central Mental Hospital and the national project for radiation oncology. For too long focus on mental health services has fallen off the table. I, along with the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, am anxious to ensure this will not continue to be the case. Our focus on primary health care is a key component of our strategy to deliver care locally which will take pressure off the acute hospital sector.

Despite investing €5 billion in improving water services in the past decade, environmental infrastructure continues to be an issue. Consequently, alongside structural reforms to the water sector, water services investment will be a key focus of the programme. In the years to 2016, in excess of €1.6 billion of Exchequer resources will be committed to the water services area.

The Office of Public Works allocation of €500 million includes funding for the flood relief programme, the necessity of which we were reminded of only too recently. In recent years the State has spent heavily to incentivise households and businesses to enhance energy efficiency. We will continue a level of support in the short term and hope to find other funding mechanisms for medium-term support.

While the motorway network is almost complete, the Government is still allocating significant funds to the transport area. Among the main priorities over the medium term will be ensuring adequate maintenance of the national road network to protect the value of investment. It is necessary to put on hold some of the large scale projects that had been announced previously as they are not affordable. It is our job to ensure our public finances can be restored to allow these projects emerge in the not-too-distant future.

The departmental envelope, however, will allow the commencement of the linking of the two LUAS lines which will incorporate a line extending to Broombridge in north-west Dublin. The railway safety programme, replacement buses, particularly for Dublin, and the upgrade of existing quality bus corridors will also be delivered.

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