Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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26. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide an update on the recent Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board meeting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22169/23]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I was delighted to chair the inaugural meeting of the reconstituted Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board on May 2nd. I have taken the step of personally chairing this Board to drive project delivery for the National Development Plan (NDP) over its lifetime. The membership of the new Board comprises myself as Chair; Secretary General, Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform; Secretary General, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage; Secretary General, Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science; along with five external members of the Board.

At the first meeting of the Board I set out the importance of delivering the NDP for the future prosperity of the country, and to achieve critical social and environmental goals. I also highlighted the importance of having an external view on the progress of Government in bringing further insights to the consideration of policy challenges. I requested that members submit to the Secretariat of the Board their views on the constraints holding back delivery of the National Development Plan (NDP). The constraints identified will be the focus of the next meetings of the Board. I also requested that the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (DFHERIS) give a presentation at the next meeting on the work they are doing in relation to boosting the skills capacity in the construction sector.

The terms of reference for the Board were agreed at its first meeting. At the meeting I signalled that the key term of reference for this Board was to “Identify system wide responses to resolve any significant cross-cutting issues arising from National Development Plan (NDP) and National Planning Framework (NPF) implementation.” I also indicated that there may have to be more meetings of the Board than those planned quarterly in view of the importance of advancing NDP delivery.

At future meetings Sectoral Secretaries General/Heads of Office will be invited to appear before the group to highlight efforts to increase delivery. In addition, there will be increased focus on addressing the constraints that are impeding NDP delivery including fixing the planning challenges, boosting the skills offering in the construction sector and boosting construction sector productivity.

My chairing of the Delivery Board is part of a wider suite of significant actions aimed at enhancing project delivery in the NDP. The recent renaming and reconstitution of my Department, to specifically include NDP Delivery, brought about a greater emphasis and mandate for the delivery of the NDP. In light of this new role, a review of the support structures and levers available across Government to maximise delivery of projects was undertaken. As a result, a series of actions and reforms were identified as priorities to improve delivery of NDP projects and programmes. I secured government approval for that package of measures on 29 March. Those other actions being advanced to support delivery include:

• Significant changes to reduce the administrative burden in delivering major capital projects;
• Capacity reviews of departments and agencies with significant delivery programmes to be carried out, where appropriate, to ensure that adequate resources for project delivery are in place;
• Additional reforms to the Capital Works Management Framework, which sets out the contracts used for public capital projects;
• Direct reporting to Government on NDP delivery on a quarterly basis throughout 2023 and 2024 will now also take place and
• An independent evaluation of NDP priorities and capacity will be conducted over the coming months.

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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27. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform as the new Chair of the Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board, the processes and procedures he hopes to implement that will speak to a fair allocation of national capital monies to individual regions and populations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22059/23]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Balanced regional development is a key priority of this Government and is at the heart of Project Ireland 2040.

Project Ireland 2040 includes the National Planning Framework (NPF), which sets the overarching spatial strategy for the next twenty years and sets out ten National Strategic Outcomes (NSOs) to provide a strategic framework for the selection and development of appropriate interventions to address infrastructure needs at a national, regional and local level.

As Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform I am responsible for setting the overall capital allocations across Departments and for monitoring monthly expenditure at Departmental level. The responsibility for the management and delivery of individual investment projects, within the allocations agreed under the National Development Plan (NDP), rests with the individual sponsoring Department in each case. My Department therefore allocates expenditure on a departmental basis, not a geographic basis.

The recent renaming and reconstitution of my Department, to specifically include NDP Delivery, has brought about a greater emphasis and mandate for the delivery of the NDP. In light of this new role, a review of the support structures and levers available across Government to maximise delivery of projects was undertaken, as well as engagement with stakeholders and Government colleagues. As a result, a series of actions and reforms were identified as priorities to improve delivery of NDP projects and programmes. I secured Government approval for that package of measures on 29 March. Those measures include:

• Significant changes to reduce the administrative burden in delivering major capital projects;
• As Minister I am now taking a direct role in overseeing delivery of the NDP through chairing the Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board. The new Delivery Board will focus on major project (€200m+) delivery targets. Sectoral Secretaries General will be invited to appear before the group to highlight efforts to increase delivery. In addition, there will be increased focus on fixing the planning challenges, boosting the skills offering in the construction sector and boosting construction sector productivity;
• Capacity reviews of departments and agencies with significant delivery programmes to ensure that adequate resources for project delivery are in place;
• Additional reforms to the Capital Works Management Framework, which sets out the contracts used for public capital projects;
• Direct reporting to Government on NDP delivery on a quarterly basis throughout 2023 and 2024 will now also take place and
• In addition, an independent evaluation of NDP priorities and capacity will be conducted over the coming months.