Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 July 2014
324. Deputy Kevin Humphreys asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide, in tabular form, the amount of capital investment spending in each year since 2000; the percentage of GDP this was in each year; the EU average currently; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29585/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe following table sets out the levels of Exchequer voted gross capital expenditure in each year from 2000 to 2013 in nominal terms and expressed as a percentage of GDP.
Figures for investment at EU level are available on the Eurostat website (http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/tgm/refreshTableAction.do?tab=table&plugin=0&pcode=teina210&language=en ).
The Eurostat estimate for average levels of Central Government fixed investment in 2013 was 2.2% of GDP for the Euro 28.
It is important to note that reporting investment as a percentage of GDP does not reflect either the existing level of capital endowment in the State or the level of maturity of the economy. For example, in a more mature economy, the economic return for additional investment may be lower and the opportunity cost of diverting additional resources towards investment may be high.
My Department is currently conducting a review of capital expenditure priorities. This will inform Government decisions on capital allocations for the medium term, and will form part of the forthcoming Budget deliberations.
|
Year |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
|
Amount €m |
3,931 |
4,976 |
5,584 |
5,361 |
5,204 |
5,883 |
6,661 |
7,819 |
9,011 |
7,333 |
6,384 |
4,515 |
3,809 |
3,287 |
|
As % of GDP |
3.7% |
4.2% |
4.3% |
3.8% |
3.5% |
3.6% |
3.8% |
4.1% |
4.8% |
4.4% |
3.90% |
2.6% |
2.2% |
1.9% |
