Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

One of the measures that has been at the centre of what the Minister describes as the recovery of this country was the proposal in his party's manifesto to invest €7 billion in green infrastructure. The absence of the legislation required to give coherence to this area makes it difficult for people. Much of this money will come from the private sector. We are sending a poor message and it appears that the private sector is making decisions for itself in the absence of a policy framework. We are probably missing significant opportunities for securing investment at an early stage by virtue of the fact that the legislation is being delayed until the middle of next year. Is there any prospect of it being brought forward in a speedier timeframe? Can our committee, for example, play a stronger role in doing that? Even the trimming of several months from the timeframe would be valuable rather than accepting that it will not be ready until the middle of next year.

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