Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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24. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason for the reduction of the capital budget in budget 2020 for his Department. [42524/19]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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The Department’s capital budget for 2020 should be considered in the context of:

- the Department’s capital budget increasing by over 26% between 2018 and 2019 (€745m in 2018 rising to €941m in 2019) and

-  the value achieved from the disposal by TU Dublin of its Kevin Street property, the sale of which closed in August, means that the Department no longer needs to set aside a significant funding envelope for the Grangegorman development in 2020.  The Kevin Street property sold for €140m which was about €60m above the guide price. This reduces pressure on the Department’s capital budget in 2020.

- The allocation for the School Buildings programme is broadly in line with last year’s allocation.  In 2019, the allocation was €622m and the allocation envisaged for the School Building Programme in 2020 is €620m.  This is a difference of €2m (0.3% of a reduction). A €2m reduction will have no material impact on the delivery of the school building programme.

Capital planning and budgeting is undertaken on a multi-annual basis.  Under Project Ireland 2040, the education sector will receive a total of approximately €12 billion over the period 2018-2027.  This includes some €8.8 billion for the schools sector and €2.2 billion for higher education infrastructure. The specific allocations in each area are closely monitored and may be adjusted from year to year to take account of project progress and other factors.