Vol. 436 No. 1
32 Mr. Cox asked the Minister for Finance whether his attention has been drawn to the recent unofficial reports from Brussels that serious questions are being raised about the potential benefits of aspects of the National Development Plan and, in particular, the absence of cost-benefit analysis in relation to many of the proposals.
34 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Finance the initial response, if any, that has been received from Brussels to the National Development Plan; his response to newspaper reports that EC officials had raised serious questions about the potential benefits of some of the proposals; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
72 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Finance his views on recent media reports that EC Commission officials are questioning aspects of the Government's National Development Plan 1994-1999; and when the Plan will be approved.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 32, 34 and 72 together. I assume that the questions relate to a story in the Irish Independent on 10 November 1993. The story has no reliable basis in fact. The Commissioner for Regional Policy and the Commission officials involved in the negotiations have confirmed this to be the case.
The National Development Plan will form the basis for negotiations with the EC Commission which will culminate in agreement on the Community Support Framework (CSF) for Ireland. The CSF will represent the Community's response to the Plan and will set out the agreed development priorities, the forms of assistance and the indicative financing plan.
The negotiations are likely to take several months and it is expected that the CSF will be agreed early in 1994. I am confident of a successful outcome to the negotiations.
At this stage only preliminary discussions have taken place and to date they have dealt solely with issues of clarification. The Commission services are still engaged in internal consultations and have not yet adopted their negotiating mandate. Thus, no formal Commission views on the substance of the Plan have been conveyed to us.
33 Miss Flaherty asked the Minister for Finance if he shares the view of the Construction Industry Federation of the desirability of bringing forward the infrastructural elements of the National Development Plan 1994-1999 to get maximum benefits from it.
The Government would wish to bring forward the various investments set out in the National Development Plan 1994-1999 as rapidly as possible but can only do so insofar as the availability of National and EC resources allows.
