Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)

-----the loss of some 7,500 jobs?

The Minister referred to the jobs plan last June. The Government injected an additional €32 million in capital spending and dressed it up with other measures as a jobs plan. The Minister must acknowledge it is an anti-jobs plan given that 20 times the amount of capital spending is being sucked out than was put in in June.

The A5 is not a parochial issue. I am very proud of being from Donegal and I challenge the Minister to examine the investment in public and private infrastructure made in Donegal over the past decade. Transport 21 was flawed and I said so at the time because it the north west to the very tail end of the project. When things went wrong we were left with absolutely nothing.

Deputy McHugh referred to the lack of rail services. Donegal is one of three counties which does not have a rail service. We did not receive the same type of investment in the past. The issue is not just a road to the north-west end of Donegal. Rather, it is about creating a competitive region. An area with the highest level of deprivation and huge structural unemployment problems needs to have a dual carriageway. It would lift the competitiveness of the region and reduce employers' transport costs.

The Minister mentioned the project is being deferred but gave a political commitment that it will be fulfilled at some time in the future. He also gave a commitment that a sum of €25 million will be injected in 2014 and 2015, a figure which is too small. Over the next 48 hours the Minister, along with the Taoiseach and others such as the Deputy First Minister, will be centrally involved in getting the project back on track. A unilateral decision was taken by the Government which has put the project at risk but it can be brought back on track.

Can the Minister give me a commitment as to when he envisages the €350 million required for the project from the State will be allocated? Does he acknowledge this is not just a commitment from the Dáil but is part of an international agreement, the St. Andrews agreement? I was centrally involved in it, in terms of the peace dividend. I could read out the letter from the Taoiseach in which he committed to the project.

I want to hear the political commitment to the project and start the money will be extended in 2013 and 2014, as the Minister said. I would like to hear that additional money to the €25 million promised will be allocated. When will the entire amount be allocated? We on this side of the Border cannot plan for a major infrastructural project at a cost of approximately €1 billion where three contractors have already been appointed if we did not know from where and when 40% of the funding was to come.

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