John Cummins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I support the Order of Business as outlined. I would take this opportunity to talk about a positive decision that has just been made by Cabinet in the last while about the north quays in Waterford city. This is a project that many people have been involved in over the last six or seven years and there have been many false dawns along the way. This morning, Cabinet approved over €170 million for the public infrastructure elements of the project, which consist of the sustainable transport bridge over the River Suir, a new integrated transport hub, including the relocation of Plunkett Station, and new access roads and bridges onto the north quays site. The message from today's decision is that despite the increased costs as a result of inflation in the construction market, the Government is continuing to support this very ambitious regeneration project for Waterford, not only because it stacks up in a cost-benefit analysis but also because it secures Waterford's place as a centre of growth, which is clear from the CSO statistics that were published recently. This news will be welcomed across my county. It will allow Waterford City and County Council to appoint a main contractor for that public works contract and enable that contractor to start on site in the new year.The CEO of Waterford City and County Council, Michael Walsh, and his team have been doing a great deal of work on this. They have been engaged with private sector partners and the Irish Strategic Investment Fund in respect of the private elements of the site, which are expected to be developed in tandem with the public works contract, which is expected to take about three and a half years. For Waterford city over the three- to five-year construction phase it is going to create upwards of 1,000 jobs per annum. It is a very significant regeneration project, one of the biggest in the country. That green light has been given by Government today. I want to put on record my thanks to all of the Ministers cross-party, Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the Green Party, who have worked together on this project to bring it forward through the various stages. It is a perfect example of balanced regional development and Government parties working hand-in-glove with one another to bring forward a project of this scale.