Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Colleagues have spoken about many of the issues, and I will try to raise a new one. I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy O’Donovan, to the House.

We are considering long-term thinking, which is important and needed if we are to ensure we can plan for a collective future in Ireland and, importantly, situate ourselves within the collective challenges faced in Europe and the wider world. Therefore, the long-term thinking element is very welcome. There are areas where more joined-up thinking is needed. Some of the issues in this regard have been highlighted. We must ensure, while meeting the environmental targets set for 2040, that there is stronger thinking in terms of how we ensure they are fully reflected. We must ensure that we give ourselves the space to respond to what I hope will be strengthened targets at European level. The sustainable development goals comprise an example. Ireland took a lead within the United Nations in this regard to ensure those targets are really being reflected and that we place ourselves within the long-term collective project, not only nationally but also internationally. There could be strengthening in this area. The Minister of State should speak to how he envisages the plan responding in this regard.

With regard to joined-up thinking, Senator Dolan spoke very eloquently about ensuring that we address issues that affect communities right across Ireland, not simply on a community basis but as a cohort. If 18% of the population have a disability, the needs of a substantial proportion need to be reflected in the plan. When we plan for population growth, we must look to the detail, including on family type, for example. A large number of households are now headed by a single parent. We must bear that in mind in a proper and meaningful way in our strategies, such as our housing strategy.

It is welcome that the plan recognises the importance of social infrastructure, as well as capital infrastructure. Social infrastructure is crucial to all parts of Ireland and it ensures the benefits of a growing economy are felt throughout Ireland. In this regard, I refer to intensive employment areas, such as care, including home care and childcare, or areas where we can ensure, if we invest properly, quality employment in every town.

I recognise that the rural fabric has been spoken about in terms of hubs and employment. Various members have spoken about various parts of the country but a point that is cross-cutting, important and complementary, and on which the Minister of State will be working with the Minister, Deputy Ring, is that we must ensure we restore the community fabric that has been cut away. In our community development projects, for example, we have been very much focusing narrowly on employment recently. The capacity to work on other parts of the social fabric has been diminished. I refer to the community fabric, be it youth services or services for older people. These are part of what create a real development plan — a community development plan that reaches all parts of Ireland.

Family resource centres have been mentioned by others. I echo the concern expressed strongly in the other House and at meetings of the Joint Committee on Employment Affairs and Social Protection that citizen information services are being undermined by a current proposal involving narrowing. This needs to be examined. The services are how we connect people and address collective issues and collective rights.

In the time I have left, I want to focus on just two specific issues, which concern not where the money is going but how projects are developed. I urge the Minister of State to genuinely take on board in the first instance the concerns expressed about public private partnerships. He should not dismiss them based on any ideological or other perspective but should look to the evidence and real concerns that exist. I refer, for example, to the kinds of contracts that were made for toll roads. We have been tied into contracts that have proved debilitating and which are at odds with meeting our climate change targets.Another important limitation with public private partnerships is that they can diminish responsiveness either to new policy priorities that we identify together or to the innovation offered by community. That is the nature of a contract, and it is a concern.

My final point is about procurement, which is a most important one for me and one on which I hope to have a specific debate with the Minister in the House. Perhaps he will indicate his agreement to that debate. If we are to spend €116 billion, can we ensure that every euro will be put to the maximum benefit of our people? Can we ensure that we will include and give weighting to social, environmental and community benefit criteria when we are issuing contracts? We must use the maximum space afforded to us under European procurement rules. I ask the Minister specifically to address the question of procurement. How do we apply joined-up thinking to procurement and how the money is spent? Will the Minister include a weighting for social benefit, good environmental practice and good employment practices so we can ensure that good employers and those who give back get these contracts? Will he also ensure that social clauses are used in how these are delivered, that is, going beyond the simple social clause of taking on the long-term unemployed and looking to the wider interpretation of social clauses? I hope the Minister will indicate a willingness to take a deeper look at how we spend the €116 billion to ensure a wider pool of benefit for everybody in Ireland.