Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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8.To ask the Taoiseach if he will provide an overview of the shared island programme since its launch in 2020; and the funding provided to each project and the initiatives supported, in tabular form. [33198/24]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Government has prioritised and progressed the Shared Island initiative since it was launched in 2020, working with all communities and political traditions for a shared future, underpinned by the Good Friday Agreement.

On 20 February last, the Government announced the largest ever package of funding for cross-border investments. This included a commitment of €600 million to the A5 North-West transport corridor, and to progressing of linked road projects in Donegal and Monaghan.

Allocations were also made by Government from the Shared Island Fund to contribute to the redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast; introduce an hourly-frequency rail service between Dublin and Belfast; move ahead with construction of the landmark Narrow Water Bridge; create a renewed visitor experience at the Battle of the Boyne site; and for new cross-border cooperation schemes on enterprise development, and on tackling educational underachievement.

A full list of Shared Island Fund allocations to date is provided in tabular form below.

The Shared Island initiative also supports wide-ranging research and civic dialogue programmes focused on common concerns for the future in economic, social, cultural and political terms.

The most recent ESRI Shared Island research report was published on 10 April on Gender and Labour Market Inclusion in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Further work by the ESRI has been commissioned – on income distribution levels; and on tackling child poverty across the island – both to be published later this year.

Since 2020, the Shared Island Dialogue series has brought together more than 3,500 citizens and civic representatives to discuss how cooperation and interaction can help address challenges and take up opportunities that concern and connect the whole island. This series will continue in the autumn, with contributions from a range of different perspectives on what achieving a more reconciled island requires in societal terms in the time ahead.

The Shared Island Youth Forum brings together 80 young civic representatives aged 18-25. The Forum has met nine times to develop an overall statement of their vision and values for a shared future, to be published in the autumn.

Through the Shared Island initiative, the Government is investing in quality of life and opportunity for people, North and South, and interacting with all communities on how we can better share this island, however it may be constituted, underpinned by the Good Friday Agreement.

Tabular information

Table 1: