Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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61. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the estimated cumulative value of the investments to be made in counties Clare, Tipperary and Limerick, respectively, under the timeframe of the National Development Plan 2021-2030; the estimated funding drawdown to date in each county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30986/23]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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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. Expenditure is therefore allocated and monitored on a Departmental basis and not a geographic basis.

The Government has committed €165 billion funding for capital investment, as set out in the NDP published in October 2021. The NDP includes indicative Exchequer allocations for each Department for a five year period (2021 to 2025) and the overall capital expenditure ceilings out to 2030. This expenditure was considered and agreed in order to support those sectors that would be key in delivering the ten National Strategic Outcomes (NSOs) identified in the National Planning Framework (NPF). The NDP contains expenditure commitments for a range of strategic investment priorities which have been determined by the relevant Departments as central to the delivery of the National Planning Framework vision.

In 2023, over €12 billion will be made available from the Exchequer for investment in public capital projects, which will provide more schools, homes, hospitals and other pieces of vital infrastructure. This level of expenditure will be pivotal in consolidating the progress already made, supporting balanced regional development and, most importantly, delivering the necessary infrastructure to support our future climate change obligations as well as our social and economic requirements.

The Government will continue to detail the delivery of the NDP at regular intervals into the future to allow for full transparency on the implementation of Project Ireland 2040. This will be achieved through regular updates of the Project Ireland 2040 capital investment tracker and map as well as the publication of annual reports and regional reports highlighting Project Ireland 2040 achievements and giving a detailed overview of the public investments which have been made throughout the country.

The capital investment tracker provides a composite update on the progress of all major investments with an estimated cost of greater than €20 million. Accompanying the tracker, the myProjectIreland interactive map details projects across the country and provides details on specific projects by county, including counties Clare, Tipperary and Limerick and contains smaller investments such as schools and social housing projects. Search facilities also allow citizens to view projects in their regional area, by city, by county or by eircode.

In addition, Regional Reports on the implementation of Project Ireland 2040 in the three Regional Assembly areas have been published for 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021, with an update for 2022 scheduled to be published in the coming weeks. The reports set out the regional projects and programmes, which are being planned and delivered in the Southern Region, including in counties Clare, Tipperary and Limerick, as part of the public investment detailed in Project Ireland 2040. While the reports do not provide an exhaustive list of all public capital expenditure, they serve to highlight the diverse range of investments being made by the State under Project Ireland 2040 in the region.

The Project Ireland 2040 Regional Reports, capital investment tracker and myProjectIreland interactive map are all available on gov.ie/2040.

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The Government has committed €165 billion funding for capital investment, as set out in the NDP published in October 2021. This expenditure was considered and agreed in order to support those sectors that would be key in delivering the ten National Strategic Outcomes (NSOs) identified in the National Planning Framework (NPF).

The NDP contains expenditure commitments for a range of strategic investment priorities which will contribute towards the achievement of these NSOs, including NSO 5 which relates to a Strong Economy supported by Enterprise, Innovation and Skills.

NSO 5 aims to maintain and enhance Ireland's status as a competitive, innovative and resilient enterprise base providing high-quality jobs and employment opportunities for people to live and prosper in all regions.

In 2022, there were 301,475 people employed in IDA supported employment, with a further 218,178 in Enterprise Ireland supported employment. The White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030, published in December 2022, outlines a vision to enable Irish-based enterprise to succeed. Success will be determined through competitive advantage founded on sustainability, innovation and productivity and delivering rewarding jobs and livelihoods.

Ireland's foreign direct investment base has shown continued resilience with over 32,400 jobs created in 2022 in IDA supported client companies. More than half (52%) of IDA investments in 2022 went to regional locations. There were over 19,600 new jobs created by Enterprise Ireland supported companies in 2022.

The Government and I welcome the recent news that Ireland has ranked overall 2nd in the 2023 IMD World Competitive Rankings, which assesses and ranks 64 economies around the world based on their ability to create and maintain a competitive business environment. The ranking underlines the continued improvement in Ireland’s fiscal position, our strong national income growth and increased foreign direct investment.