Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 13 June 2012
13 Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he has drawn up a list of capital investment projects which could be undertaken as part of a stimulus and growth plan following the fiscal treaty referendum; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28311/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraSince coming into office, the current Government has been working on a range of measures to boost employment and help stimulate economic growth beginning with the Jobs Initiative which was launched in May 2011 and which comprised a range of taxation and expenditure measures of €1.8bn designed to help get people back to work. Further work to stimulate economic growth and create employment is ongoing and, in this context, my Department has been actively engaged, in conjunction with the Department of Finance and the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA), in identifying potential new sources of funding for projects where it makes sense and offers value for money for the State.
My Department undertook a review of the public capital programme last year, the results of which were published in the "Infrastructure and Capital Investment 2012-2016: Medium Term Exchequer Framework". The Framework sets out €17 billion worth of Exchequer investment intended to address critical infrastructure investment gaps in order to aid economic recovery, social cohesion and environmental sustainability. The sectors prioritised for investment in the Framework include education, health, jobs and enterprise. While this represents a significant level of spend that will generate activity throughout the country, I am conscious that there is more that we could do if we had additional funding available.
The Government is now considering carefully what potential further projects could be supported should a source of additional funding become available. It is likely that such investment would be focused on areas that meet the Government's key investment priorities, boost employment and help stimulate economic growth. My Department has established a high level interdepartmental steering committee which is considering potential projects for investment that meet these criteria. Proposals from departments have been received and are being considered by officials of my Department and by the steering committee. I am confident that a pipeline of necessary and worthwhile projects will emerge over the course of the coming weeks. As I have already mentioned, my Department is working closely with the Department of Finance and the NDFA to ensure that additional funding sources are available in order to deliver any proposed pipeline of projects.
