Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for Finance is making a case with regard to how we can maximise capital expenditure. Under the capital plan, which we discussed earlier, the Government plans to increase capital investment in the years ahead. Capital investment increased this year by more than €300 million or 14% compared to 2016. It is planned to increase it further every year until 2021-2022 when it is expected to exceed 3.5% of national income. My experience of increasing capital investment indicates that it is important to have planning permission and agreement to allow moneys to be spent and this takes time. On the issue of using the proceeds from a potential share disposal to fund additional expenditure, this is not possible under the current rules.

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