Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)

The Deputy knows the Government is constrained in its public finances. Effectively, the country has been in a form of receivership. Only one agency will lend to us, namely the troika, and we have to abide by certain stringencies that result from that. Within that, we are using the money we have extremely creatively. The strategic investment fund and NewERA are taking €250 million from the pension fund and leveraging it to a €1 billion fund which is available for infrastructural investments. The sort of quality investments that can improve our infrastructure now have a fund available to them. The rolling out of that into projects will be an important element.

A lot of the initiatives, such as the development capital fund and the innovation fund, are bringing in private sector money and making it available to companies that are starved of credit from the banks. Again, that is innovative in that it is bringing in investment money that is lying fallow and using it for companies with high potential. We have to box cleverer in this environment. There is not the scope for the huge bankrolling spending programme the Deputy feels ought to happen. It would be great if we could have that but we have to be cleverer about the way we promote employment, and that is what we are seeking to do.

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