Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank both Deputies for giving me the opportunity to address this issue in the House.

As Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding for the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual road projects are matters for the National Roads Authority, NRA, under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2007, in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. Within its capital budget, the assessment and prioritisation of individual projects are matters, in the first instance, for the NRA, in accordance with section 19 of the Roads Act, but the NRA does consult me on these matters. The national financial position has meant very large reductions in roads expenditure in recent years. The NRA has a budget of just under €320 million for improvement and maintenance works on national roads this year. A total of €21.28 million has been allocated this year by the NRA for improvement works in County Kerry and €1.35 million for maintenance works. A total of €7.3 million has been allocated to Cork County Council by the NRA for improvement works and €1.7 million for maintenance works.

The reality is that on a national basis the available funds simply do not match the amount of work we want to do. The Government's published capital expenditure framework sets out the extent to which major new road construction projects are being scaled down in the period between now and 2016. For this reason, it is not possible to progress a range of worthwhile projects and the main focus has to be on the maintenance and repair of roads. This will remain the position in the coming years. As a result, no new major Exchequer funded development projects are scheduled to start construction in the short term. Three further public private partnership projects are, however, being progressed. These are the Gort to Tuam dual carriageway motorway, the New Ross bypass and the Gorey to Enniscorthy road.

The N22 project is the Ballyvourney to Macroom improvement scheme which aims to bypass Macroom town and involves the construction of 43 km of new carriageway from the end of the Ballincollig bypass to Ballyvourney. The project was the subject of a judicial review against approval of the scheme, but the legal challenge has been rejected. As a result, notices to treat have been served on affected landowners who, as Deputy Michael Creed mentioned, will be eligible for the goodwill payment as it went to An Bord Pleanála many years ago. I thank him for raising the matter with me some weeks ago. This means that once the land is bought, the project will be shovel ready. The NRA has made an allocation of €400,000 in respect of this project for 2013.

I have had some discussions with the NRA on the matter with a view to pursuing it as a public private partnership. The intention is to go ahead with the Gort to Tuam road project which is first on the list and has already gone to tender and then to deal with the New Ross and Gorey to Enniscorthy projects. As the Macroom to Ballyvourney and Dunkettle projects are the only ones with full planning permission - at that stage the land will be purchased - it is planned to pursue them either separately or as a bundle under a public private partnership scheme.

See this speech in context