Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 June 2023
34. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform to outline the interaction his Department has had with the Department of Transport with respect to the delivery of projects under the NDP; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30990/23]
View answerThe question arises from a report that the Department of Transport has a major underspend so far this year. Will the Minister comment on this? Is this the case? If there will be an underspend at the year's end, is the money to be handed back to his Department? Was there an underspend last year?
The following figures for 2023 are in the public domain and I have no doubt that they have prompted the Deputy's question. At the end of May, the cumulative net capital expenditure for the Department of Transport was €2.343 billion which was 19.1% behind the profile of €2.89 billion.
The Department of Transport has a capital underspend versus where it was a year ago. It is not so far behind where it is on profile. I have had a lot of engagement with the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, on this. His view is that with continued focus on this issue throughout the year, there should be no underspend or it will be minimal. I am very aware of the recent history we have had in large capital Departments underspending. I will work closely with the Minister, Deputy Ryan, on that to try to minimise the risk developing with the Department of Transport.
I thank the Minister for his comprehensive response. What was the situation last year? Was there an underspend last year? If so, what was it and what happened to that funding? Was it handed back to his Department or what happens in cases such as that?
Is he concerned about roads projects that are advanced to a certain level, costing in some cases millions of euro, and then halted? If they are halted for quite a while, they might have to start again, including public consultation and so on. Is the Minister or his Department concerned about the loss of finance in such instances? The Mallow relief road is a project I have brought to the attention of the House previously and on which quite a lot of money has been spent. This is going back quite a while, when the Minister was Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport. He okayed the project. Now it has been halted for the sake of €1.4 million that was expected by the local authority and TII but was not delivered. The Minister for Transport says that a shortage of money in his Department has stopped the project. Mallow town is truly suffering because of lorries and cars passing through the main street, which they should not do. The town has a very good project, which includes active travel, cycling, walkways and so on. It is at an advanced level and it has been halted or no reason whatsoever. The reason I have been given is lack of finance.
I was very interested in the Minister's response to Deputy Stanton's question. There seems to be a theme of underspend within the Department of Transport. I understand that part of that probably relates to the fact that a lot of these projects must be shovel-ready.
On that note, there is a project that could have a massive benefit nationally, namely the EuroVelo routes. This is a cycling route that extends from the Continent right up to Scandinavia, with the west coast of Ireland, in particular, being part of that. These are not greenways or dedicated cycling routes; they are shared spaces. The project presents a fantastic opportunity to upgrade rural coastal roads in order that they are improved not only for drivers but also, most importantly, for people on bikes who decide to do these incredibly successful EuroVelo routes, which see families all over Europe participating in cycling. That is a shovel-ready project if expenditure is being sought.
Thank you for letting me in, a Chathaoirligh. Deputy Stanton has asked a vital question. As I said in my previous contribution, the underspend in the Department of Transport last year was €193 million. The N17 project needs only a small allocation to continue its development for such vital infrastructure. It does not make sense at all. I know the Minister will say it is for the Department of Transport to examine and the project is its responsibility but somebody in his Department not only needs to examine these cases but also hold Departments to account while also providing them with what they need to ensure that these projects that were committed to are delivered. There are mixed messages coming from the different strands of government. People in these locations who are dependent on this roads infrastructure do not know where they stand with the Government. It would be good if the Minister could bring some clarity to the matter.
One of many issues I have relates to the Ardee to Castleblayney bypass scheme on the N2 and the fact that an allocation of €600,000 - it does not matter whether that comes from a Minister or the TII - was made to Monaghan County Council, which is the lead on the scheme, to meet commitments but it is not sufficient to even cover the design phase. We are talking about a determination that was made to upgrade a road rather than to build a new road or whatever else. It was all making complete sense. What is happening now does not make any sense from a money point of view or from a safety point of view. This infrastructure needs to be built but, once again, it falls into the quagmire as regards Government determinations. We really need to look at the means by which those determinations are made.
As I explained in dealing with the more general questions earlier in this session, it is the responsibility of individual Ministers regarding particular capital projects for which they are responsible. It is also the case at the moment that the Department of Transport in the latest Exchequer returns that we published for May was pointing to a capital underspend. The Minister and his Department are confident that as they move through that year, either that underspend will be minimised or it will come in broadly in line with the spend it has profiled. I have heard the views of Deputies on individual roads projects and I am happy to raise those particular matters with the Minister on their behalf.
I return to the questions I asked. Was there an underspend last year and, if so, how much was it and was any of that funding returned?
Is the Minister concerned with projects that have cost in some cases millions of euro being abandoned, with the risk of that funding being lost or wasted?
There was an underspend last year. I can come back to the Deputy with the figure; I do not have it now. His question referred to particular projects rather than the overall budget. I can get that information for the Deputy and I will make sure he gets it tomorrow.
As for projects being abandoned, there is no budgetary reason that I am aware of for projects of a certain level to which the Department is committed stopping. I am not aware of such a reason they cannot move forward. As I said, looking at where we are up to the end of May, from a capital spend point of view, there was an underspend for this year. It may be the case that as the Minister looks to the medium term, he is worried about the inability of all these projects to be funded in a few years. That could be a reason. However, looking at where we are at the moment, inside this year there is a capital underspend, but I am assured that it will be minimised as the year goes on. I will work with the Minister for Transport on that.
