Tom Brabazon (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

141. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform for an overview of the progress made to date under National Strategic Outcome 10 of the National Development Plan 2021-2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16094/25]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

As Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitisation 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 or sectoral policy strategies, within the allocations agreed under the National Development Plan (NDP), rests with the individual sponsoring Department in each case. Each Minister is responsible for deciding on the priority programmes and projects that will be delivered under their remit within the NDP and for setting out the timelines for delivery.

The Government committed €165 billion towards capital investment through the National Development Plan (NDP) 2021-30 published in 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). An additional €2.25 billion of windfall corporate tax receipts has also been allocated from 2024 to 2026, to provide funding for critical infrastructure projects that are at an advanced stage, as well as to the existing Climate Action Fund.

In Budget 2025, almost €15 billion was made available from the Exchequer for investment in public capital projects along with €3 billion of funds from the sale of the State’s shareholding in AIB in June 2024. This level of expenditure is pivotal in consolidating the progress already made and in supporting balanced regional development to address key infrastructural bottlenecks more rapidly, and lead to further improvements in living standards and competitiveness.

The NDP contains expenditure commitments for a range of strategic investment priorities which will contribute towards the achievement of the NSOs, including NSO 10 - Access to Quality Childcare, Education and Health Services, which aims to ensure the co-ordination and provision of childcare places, primary and post-primary schools places and health infrastructure with the spatial development of cities and regions, consistent with the objectives of the NPF.

In terms of childcare, during 2024, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth spent €135 million across its various capital programmes to support a range of key services in respect of children and young people and international migrants. The Department of Education spent over €1.3 billion on primary and post-primary infrastructure and continued to deliver school building projects under various programmes and schemes, such as the Large Scale Capital Programme, and the Additional School Accommodation Scheme. The Department of Health invested over €1.2 billion to improve health facilities, provide new primary care centres, community nursing units and new hospital ward blocks.

Further details of projects and programmes being delivered under NSO 10 can be found in the capital investment tracker which 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 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.

The Project Ireland 2040 capital investment tracker and myProjectIreland interactive map are all available on gov.ie/2040 and will be updated in Q2 2025.