Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

When funding for this project was initially announced as part of the St. Andrew's Agreement in 2006, it included a commitment of £400 million from the Government towards the overall cost of the A5 project and the A8 project from Larne to Belfast. The plan at the time was that A5 dual carriageway from Derry to Aughnacloy would be completed by 2015. Unfortunately, a lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then. It is now 2019 and the project has not even commenced. It has been plagued by planning difficulties and legal challenges which have given rise to delays. The project has also been delayed by the fact that there is no Government in place at Stormont. A legal workaround had to be found, which took some time. If there are no further delays or challenges, phase 1 could start in 2020.

I seek clarity on the Government's commitment to the project. In 2011, the Government withdrew its commitment to contribute £400 million. This resulted in the Derry to Aughnacloy section of the project being broken up into three phases. As the Minister has outlined, phase 1 from Newbuildings to Strabane is the only phase for which the Government has provided a clear funding commitment. Phases 2 and 3 are not progressing because no funding plan has been put in place for them. What are the Government's plans in respect of funding phases 2 and 3 in order that they can be progressed without any unnecessary delays?

See this speech in context