Vol. 1089 No. 2
6. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the progress being made on the adoption of artificial intelligence across the public service to improve efficiency, reduce administrative burdens and enhance public services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51518/26]
AI has enormous potential to reduce administrative burdens, improve productivity and free up public servants to focus on delivery. Will the Minister outline what measurable progress has been made to date in adopting AI across Departments and Government agencies, what gains have already been achieved and when we will see further gains?
My Department has taken a proactive and co-ordinated approach to supporting the responsible and effective adoption of AI across the public service. A key component of this was the publication of the Guidelines for the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Public Service in May 2025, which provide a practical framework to assist public service bodies in designing, developing and deploying AI in a manner that is ethical, transparent and aligned with public service values. Responsibility for applying the guidelines rests with each public service body to embed them within governance arrangements pertaining to relevant work programmes.
To build capabilities within the public service, my Department has worked with the Institute for Public Administration, IPA, to develop a suite of training courses on AI in the public service. Since they were launched, very high uptake has been observed with over 5,500 people having completed the course on the use of AI in the public service, and over 10,000 having completed the course on wider AI in the public service.
In addition to training, my Department is in the process of establishing an AI advisory unit to provide advice and expertise for public service bodies on how to deploy AI in a way that maximises impact, mitigates risks, and supports integration with existing systems and we are also engaging with stakeholders to determine the feasibility of establishing an appropriate central procurement arrangement for AI.
Against this backdrop, adoption of AI is actively taking place across the wider public service. In order to track diffusion of the technology and to understand the types of applications it is being used in, my Department is currently undertaking a comprehensive survey of all public sector bodies to obtain the most up-to-date data on AI adoption across the public service and to catalogue sectoral use cases to support cross-government information-sharing, learning, and strategic and operational oversight. This will also highlight a selection of flagship deployments in high-impact areas and we hope to provide a report on the findings of this survey in the coming months.
While I heard about a framework and a lot of training, I did not quite hear that we are actually measuring what cost savings, efficiencies and benefits there are, not only for the public service and Civil Service but to the people, our constituents and the public at large. Will the Minister confirm he will be measuring the real gains made in those terms?
Absolutely. The first step, and Deputy Malcolm Byrne who has been a strong advocate of it is present, is to provide a basis to encourage AI's use. From a system where the digitalisation of public services has been challenging over the past number of decades to one that positively embraces AI, it is people who will provide that interface to both design AI's use in the public service but also to use it. The fact we have had a strong uptake on training is a positive sign. We have really good test cases across different areas in terms of automation in many Departments and agencies. They are being centrally monitored and tracked now and trying to deploy and scale some of what has been developed is an important context. If you read our national AI strategy entitled Digital Ireland - Connecting our People, Securing our Future, it is against a backdrop of an aim to have 100% of key public services digitalised by 2030 and 90% of them accessed online and supported by a wider centralised AI advisory unit. This will all drive digitalisation, better public services and enhance the use of AI across the system, something I think we are doing properly by ensuring those deploying it have the appropriate training to do it.
I am more encouraged by the Minister's most recent response. It is important that the public, as well as people working in the Civil Service and public service, sees the benefits of AI. It is important the Minister's Department makes sure there are measurable key performance indicators, KPIs, measurable deliverables and that the benefits and gains are clearly articulated to people.
One of my concerns is that in using AI for efficiency, and we absolutely need to do that, we need to be careful not to leave people behind, particularly those who cannot use digital technologies, but also not to lose the authenticity of person-to-person communication. It is about striking a balance and I really think the Department needs to take a very central role in articulating that to the Civil Service, the public service and to the people we represent.
There is a supplementary question from Deputy Malcolm Byrne.
I welcome and support the views expressed by Deputy Boland and I welcome the Minister's commentary. The experience has been that across Departments, the level of engagement with AI differs. Specifically when we are talking here about public sector procurement, which was mentioned, we need to explore the use of agentic AI. I want to be clear there should always be human oversight in this space but I mean the use of agentic AI in, for instance, how we can map vendor capabilities to Government needs, in terms of tender design, and particularly in terms of intelligent bids and contract monitoring. I often say that if we were able to use agentic AI in the case of the national children's hospital, for instance, where so many variables were being addressed it could be done more efficiently. I appreciate the guidelines for the responsible use of AI are very important and we do need to have human oversight but at different levels of Government this is moving at different speeds and it varies from Department to Department.
I thank both Deputies. In terms of the wider digital public services plan we, have the life events approach which is about embedding a lot of people's interface with public services through life events, and how they can be digitally enabled through a life events portal, which will provide a much better interface to people's interaction with the State. Also to Deputy Boland's point, we will ensure we protect that human interface as well where people are required. That is a central part of our wider digital public services plan.
Part of it will be setting out, as Deputy Farrell has raised as well as Deputy Byrne, that the new procurement strategy will have a real digital focus as to how we future-proof procurement. That is something that will be set out in the coming weeks when we publish it. We will be using a lot more digital tools and technology across the procurement phase. We will set that out in the coming weeks in terms of our reform agenda and I will put the finer details on that during the period ahead.
7. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the criteria applied in assessing projects under the digital public service transformation fund, including the way in which service improvement, efficiency gains and potential for wider roll-out are considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51534/26]
Question No. 7 in the name of Deputy Ó Cearúil is being taken by Deputy Malcolm Byrne.
I ask the Minister for Public Expenditure; Infrastructure; Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the criteria applied in assessing projects under the digital public service transformation fund, including the way in which service improvement, efficiency gains and potential for wider roll-out are considered.
The public service digital transformation fund, PSDTF, was established to support the delivery of Government priorities under the Digital Public Services Plan 2030. The digital public services plan is the Government's roadmap for delivering seamless, inclusive and user-centred public services through digital transformation. This Plan is a flagship initiative under the Better Public Services strategy. It aims to ensure that by 2030, 100% of key public services are available online and 90% of applicable services are consumed digitally.
The fund is intended to accelerate digital transformation across the public service by supporting projects that improve services for the public and strengthen cross-government collaboration. It does not operate as an open competitive fund. Instead, applications are invited from selected public service bodies in line with the strategic priorities identified under the Digital Public Services Plan 2030, particularly the delivery of priority life events services and the development of shared digital capabilities that can be used across Government.
Projects seeking funding must demonstrate alignment with the Government of Ireland design principles and outline how they will advance the delivery of human-centred digital services across organisational boundaries; adoption of new and emerging technologies with the potential to support life events service delivery and the development and scaling of proven digital innovations
Projects are also expected to demonstrate how they will contribute to key public service outcomes, including customer satisfaction, public trust, service quality and increased use of digital channels.
Efficiency and value for money considerations are central to the assessment process and projects are evaluated on their capacity to streamline processes, reduce administrative burden and duplication of effort, improve data-sharing and interoperability, and deliver more integrated services across government. The potential for wider roll-out and reuse across the public service is another important consideration. Applications that demonstrate scalability, cross-government applicability and the ability to support multiple life events services are particularly encouraged. The fund is one of a range of supports provided by Departments and public service bodies to help accelerate the digital transition. Others include the provision of a suite of public digital infrastructure building blocks designed to be fully compatible and interoperable with other systems across Ireland and the EU. This ensures a consistent approach.
I welcome in particular the moves towards the digitalisation of life events. I commend the work of the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer on everything that is being done there. It is also very important not just to have the business case but that there is also the technological know-how around what it is we are hoping to achieve. One of the most critical things the Minister's Department will be overseeing is the digitalisation of health records, obviously in conjunction with the Department of Health. It is deeply frustrating to me how long it is taking. I would like assurances and perhaps the Minister will outline where we are with the plan for awarding of contracts on that. Will the Minister give assurances that, with citizens' consent, there is the possibility that anonymised health records can also be used for clinical research? That would make a lot of sense in terms of how that informs our health service. I would be grateful if the Minister could provide us with an update.
I do not have a specific update here with me on digital or electronic health records. We have taken the leap as a Government, with the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, to put significant capital funding aside to digitalise our health system, which is the correct strategic move in the context of Ireland being behind many other countries in the efficient use of health data for personal reasons and for patient records. There is huge duplication across our hospital system with paper records. There is a tender process ongoing around that. The use of research, data-sharing and anonymity is something I will have to revert to the Department of Health. It needs to be scalable and interoperable and avoid duplication and some of the mishaps we have had in other digital health systems. Given the fact that many are much more mature, it provides a real opportunity to really deploy AI in the health system in terms of diagnostics and better advanced therapeutics. It will provide a real opportunity to drive reform in our health system and better enable practitioners and clinicians to provide the best care.
I welcome that commitment. It will be transformational. It is my own view, and I do not think it is underestimating it to say, that our records not being digitalised is probably costing our health service up to a billion euro a year in terms of delays and in the failure to be able to use some of that data towards clinical research. We need to start to talk about a campaign for when we move to that situation to encourage citizens to agree to this data being used in an anonymised form to inform clinical research, which will result in further efficiencies. I am worried that we are not moving quickly enough on some of this. Along with the digitalisation process we also need an information campaign to explain to citizens the benefit of what we are actually achieving. There have been 20 years of the Clinical Research Centre at UCD. We should think about the achievements it could have if it were able to have access to some of this data in partnership with other clinical research centres.
Certainly there is a massive opportunity in terms of data as we digitalise our health system. We need to do it in a way that builds trust, is transparent and obviously protects individuals as well. I would be open to that wider engagement with the Minister for Health and others, as we are tendering for this and delivering it, on how do we build the case so that people can use really important data to deliver better clinical research, and how people's personal health records can provide a huge capacity in the context of prophylactic therapeutics. There is a huge opportunity to really improve the lives of citizens in terms of population-based healthcare and the identification of issues before people develop symptoms. It is really limitless with digital health and in a way that is transformative for people's healthcare and for delivering a real public health system that is digitally enabled. Research is absolutely connected to that. I am absolutely willing to engage with the Deputy and to get the Minister involved as well around starting that wider engagement on clinical research.
8. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation to provide an update regarding investment in critical infrastructure in the west of Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50878/26]
21. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation to provide an update on infrastructure investment in the west of Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51496/26]
Will the Minister provide an update on investment in infrastructure in the west of Ireland?
I propose to take Questions Nos. 8 and 21 together.
As part of the budgetary process each year, my Department sets overall expenditure ceilings for each ministerial Vote group. These are laid out at Vote level in the budget day expenditure report published in October, with further detail provided in the Revised Estimates for public services published in December. Following the allocation of each ministerial expenditure ceiling, it is a matter for each Minister to assign funding as appropriate at programme and subhead level for their Departments and the agencies under their remit, accounting for the demands for services in different areas and regions and having regard to demographics and other factors. Within this process, both current and capital expenditure are allocated on a departmental basis and not a geographic basis.
More broadly, the achievement of balanced regional development is a key priority of this Government and is at the heart of Project Ireland 2040, which includes the national planning framework, which sets out the wider spatial strategy for the next 20 years, along with the national development plan, NDP. Since Project Ireland 2040 was launched in 2018, the Government has overseen the delivery of many impactful NDP projects across the country, including in the west of Ireland, for example: the enterprise centres in Boyle and Tulsk in Roscommon and in Belmullet and Swinford in Mayo; the N59 Moycullen bypass; the Salmon Weir Bridge in Galway; the Killaloe bypass in Clare; and heritage and tourism projects in Portumna in Galway and Aghleam in Mayo.
The NDP Review 2025 was published in line with the programme for Government commitment. The plan committed €275.4 billion in public capital investment to 2035, the largest and most significant capital investment in the history of the State. Arising from this, €19.1 billion in Exchequer capital investment will be provided in 2026. On budget day, Ministers set out the capital projects and programmes they will prioritise within their allocation. Over the end of 2025 and early 2026, Ministers developed sectoral plans for investment considering sectoral needs, including across balanced regional development. The plans published to date include planned investment and projects across the country, with many across the west of Ireland: Uisce Éireann upgrades of water and wastewater treatment plants in Lough Mask and Claremorris in Mayo; 35 social and 310 affordable new housing units in Crown Square in Galway; new transport infrastructure with Bus Connects Galway, the Galway city ring road, and the N5 in Roscommon; and sports and community facilities with the Renville Sports and Community Centre and the east Galway sports campus. That is just a small flavour of some of the projects that are being identified across the sectoral plans, which are multi-year plans to deliver across critical areas.
Progress in achieving balanced regional development and detailing the delivery of the NDP is monitored through regular updates on the capital investment tracker and the MyProjectIreland interactive map viewer. The capital investment tracker provides a composite update on the progress of all major investments, with an estimated cost of more than €20 million. Accompanying the tracker, the MyProjectIreland interactive map details projects across the country by county and contains smaller investments such as schools, healthcare facilities and social housing projects. In addition, my Department also publishes the Project Ireland 2040 annual report and regional reports, highlighting achievements and giving a detailed overview of the public investments that have been made, are being made and are planned to be made right throughout the country.
I want to raise a really important piece of infrastructure from a tourism perspective in County Galway, which is Dunguaire Castle in Kinvara. The Minister may be aware that this iconic landmark has remained closed to the public in recent years. It is in the ownership of the Shannon Group. There have been attempts to have ownership transferred to Galway County Council with a view to the council bringing it up to a safe standard and ultimately reopening it but funding issues have prevented that from happening. As per an update provided by Galway County Council, I understand that the OPW and the Department of housing are now exploring acquiring the castle and that an expression of interest may have been made. That would be very much welcomed by the local community, who are very eager to see the building in new ownership and ultimately opened up to the general public again. It has been a huge loss to the tourism offering in Kinvara and the wider region.
This question might be more appropriate for the Minister of State, Deputy Moran. Will he confirm that this is being explored or at least give me a commitment that he will come back to me with an update?
I will come back to the Deputy. There has been a meeting between Galway County Council and ourselves. I do not know what stage it is at, but if the Deputy bears with me, I will come back to him in due course.
How much time do I have?
Deputies Farrell and O'Hara have one minute each.
I have a minute, then he has a minute, and I have a minute again. Is that correct? I am sorry but it is a bit confusing.
It is a long night.
Deputies Farrell and O'Hara have a minute each, as have the Minister and the Minister of State.
That is perfect. That is all I wanted to know.
The underfunding of Galway County Council is an issue that I and na Teachtaí O'Hara and Kerrane recently raised. We did not get a commitment in relation to that from the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, but my issue is that we have a crumbling infrastructure in the west of Ireland when it comes to the basic necessities. If we cannot get a commitment from the Government that it is going to adequately fund the county council to be able provide the basic services that are required for the people living in rural County Galway, then we need to see a commitment from Government that it will invest in that infrastructure. If the Government is not going to fund the council to be able to do those things it needs to have done, then we need the Government to intervene and provide that funding.
I am not privy to the interaction the Deputy had with the Minister for housing on this, but the Local Government Fund distributes the respective funding across different local authorities, and Galway County Council and Galway City Council would receive allocations through that.
I was clear in my initial response to Deputy O'Hara. We have significant investment across many projects in the west of Ireland for water and wastewater treatment, which is required to build new homes. There is also the investment that ESB and EirGrid are doing in the context of our grid to ensure we can get energy connections, as well as the many critical projects, including the Galway ring road, which has been sitting there, as it were, for years. We need to drive on and get things built. That is what we are seeking to do across much of the infrastructure.
The specific day-to-day funding of local authorities is a matter that the Minister for housing engages with local authorities on and the funding model is separate to the wider infrastructure conversation in terms of the national development plan, some of which, to be fair, is delivered through local authorities, especially funding for particular roads, but some of the bigger road projects are funded through Transport Infrastructure Ireland. It depends on the particular project the Deputy is raising.
I am going back to the Minister of State, Deputy Moran. This is in relation to the castle. It is a key and world-class attraction on the Wild Atlantic Way. This castle has been closed for the past three years, as I mentioned, and is a huge loss to the local community. I know the OPW has a lot of other similar sites in County Galway, of which Athenry Castle and Portumna Castle are two that come to mind, and the OPW does a good job of running those sites. They are fantastic attractions, and I have a lot of confidence and faith in the OPW's ability to make a success out of Dunguaire Castle as well. Local people would welcome the OPW being involved in that particular castle. I urge the Minister of State to do everything he can to progress it. It is an awful shame to see the castle closed. We need to see the remedial works being done to bring it to a safe standard and, ultimately, reopened to the public. I welcome anything the Department or the OPW can do to progress that.
I thank the Deputy for his kind words. The OPW does good work right across the region and particularly in his constituency, as he has outlined. I get asked to take over this castle or this monument every day of the week, and I do not have an endless pot to do that. Galway County Council has reached out to the OPW and meetings have taken place, but I cannot say what further engagements have taken place at this time, but I will come back to the Deputy in due course. His colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, has also raised this issue with me, as have other TDs in the constituency. I will continue to work with the Deputy. If we can work something out together, that is fine, but I cannot give him that commitment today.
9. Deputy Eamon Scanlon asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the progress made to date under national strategic outcome, NSO, 3 of the National Development Plan 2021-2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51311/26]
As Minister, I am responsible for the setting the overall capital allocations across Departments and for monitoring monthly expenditure at departmental level. In 2021, the NDP review originally committed €165 billion for the period to 2030. The revised development plan set out €275.4 billion in capital investment to 2035, the largest and most significant capital investment in the history of the State, and gross capital expenditure ceilings for all sectors have now been set. In addition to the €275 billion, we have an additional €10 billion in equity release up to 2030. This includes €3.5 billion for energy grid capacity, €4.5 billion for water and €2 billion for low-carbon transport, including MetroLink.
Departments subsequently published sectoral investment plans setting out the capital projects to be prioritised to 2030. These plans provide visibility of the delivery pipeline, giving construction firms the certainty they need to invest in hiring, training and scaling their operations. This multi-year approach is designed to support industry planning and ensure that regional capacity can grow in line with demand. The plans include planned investment in projects across the country.
National strategic outcome, NSO, 3 deals with strengthening rural economies and communities in a number of areas, including communications. In terms of broadband, significant progress was made in 2025, with over 440,000 homes and farms passed ahead of the target of 420,000. This programme is due for completion by the end of this year, which is ahead of schedule. In terms of arts and culture, some of the ongoing projects in the investment programme that has published include the National Archives Repository, the Crawford Art Gallery, phase 1 of the National Concert Hall and the National Gallery. In terms of sport, we have the Sport Ireland campus investment. This includes the national velodrome, badminton centre and cricket centre. In terms of the media, the Government will continue to support the development of Irish language media, with investment in TG4’s studio and broadcast facilities.
Further details of projects, of which there are many, being delivered under NSO 3 can be found in the latest capital investment tracker, which is published.
While national progress is welcome, people in the north west want to know what NSO 3 is delivering for Sligo, Leitrim and south Donegal. Our region has huge potential in tourism, enterprise, remote working and the blue and green economies, but the potential is still being held back by infrastructural deficits and poor connectivity.
Roads funding is a major concern in Sligo, Leitrim and south Donegal, and planned roadworks are now being scaled back because rising construction costs have outstripped available funding. Local authorities cannot continue to do more with less. Projects that have already been identified as priorities should not be deferred simply because costs have increased. If these works are dropped this year, there is no guarantee that they will be funded next year. That is a great concern for the region.
Will the Minister outline the NSO 3 projects that have been delivered in Sligo, Leitrim and south Donegal? What share of rural regeneration funding has come to the north west and will additional roads funding be provided to ensure critical road projects are delivered? The critical road projects I am referring to are the Sligo-Galway road, the N17, the N15 and the N16.
The published tracker sets out the region-by-region specificity in terms of infrastructure investment. I understand and agree that we need to give that regional uplift to the north-west, where there is a documented infrastructure deficit. That is why we have prioritised transport in our national development plan and, in fairness, the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, has rebalanced some of the transport funding so that many of the roads projects that were delayed in the previous Government can progress where there have been difficulties.
The transport investment cycle is about €24 billion over the next five years, and there is a big uplift in transport funding in 2026. Specifics on road allocations are something between the Department of Transport and specific local authorities, but we are a Government that is front-loading significant investment - I would say in an unprecedented way - in our transport system to ensure we have that balance so that we are getting better public transport investment and seeing projects being delivered, but also that many of the roads projects, which are critical for the north-west in terms of regional development and road safety, are being delivered as well.
The success of NSO 3 should ultimately be judged by whether rural counties can attract and retain people, jobs and investment. In the north-west, communities across Sligo and Leitrim and south Donegal continue to argue that stronger intervention is needed to overcome decades of underinvestment. They point to the need for accelerated broadband delivery, greater support for town centre regeneration, expanded remote working infrastructure, enhanced tourism and outdoor recreation investment and, crucially, for improved transport connectivity and roads infrastructure. We should also mention Local Link, which has been a great success in rural Ireland but there are blank spots that need to be looked at as well.
The Minister accepts there has been underinvestment in the north-west. I am glad he recognises the fact. I ask that we progress these projects, particularly the national primary roads, which are crucial for jobs.
The Deputy and I were in Ballymote last summer, and I am very familiar with the wider territory of Sligo and the north-west, including that great county, Mayo, next door to the Deputy, where I was last weekend.
The Minister loved to get that in.
We recognise the need, whether in north-west Donegal, where I was a few weeks ago, or all the way down to Kerry. There is a need along the Atlantic corridor to give that uplift to investment in roads and to enhance Local Link. I will ask the National Transport Authority to engage with the Deputy on that. There are also huge opportunities in tourism. Where we build out the tourism infrastructure, people come in their droves. We have seen that in many parts of the west, where trails, greenways, blueways and various pieces of infrastructure have been developed. Fáilte Ireland has a plan for that too. We want to ensure that the uplift in capital investment is seen, experienced and delivered for the north-west. That is something we are committed to doing.
10. Deputy Cathy Bennett asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation if he will outline the advice and support provided by his Department to other Departments or bodies under their aegis regarding the procurement of IT systems. [51486/26]
My Department has responsibility for public procurement policy development, guidance, systems and advisory services, as well as the establishment of central buying solutions that serve the needs of public service bodies, PSBs. My Department provides a wide range of supports to assist public service bodies in the procurement of information and communications technology systems and services, both through practical procurement assistance and the provision of guidance and central procurement solutions.
The public procurement guidelines for goods and services, published by my Department, are designed to promote best practice and consistency in the application of public procurement rules in relation to the purchase of goods, services and works, including ICT goods and services. In addition to these general guidelines, my Department has also developed ICT-specific supports, including comprehensive guidance on the procurement of cloud services and recent guidance on measures that PSBs may take to mitigate potential cost and supply impacts arising from the global, AI-driven shortage of critical memory and storage IT components.
PSBs can access a broad range of ICT expertise through my Department’s central procurement solutions, including ICT research and advisory services, ICT consultancy services, procurement consultancy services and ICT professional services. PSBs can also access central procurement solutions for common ICT products and services, ranging from communications and networking solutions to data centre equipment, personal computers and a number of software licensing renewal arrangements. A number of public sector bodies undertaking procurement of ICT systems have also been provided by my Department with guidance, documentation and advice at key stages of the procurement life cycle.
Government IT projects have become synonymous with overspends, not best practice, as far as I can see. Of 220 such projects since 2024, 67 have projected overspends or have had overspends. The Department contains various units in agencies that sanction projects or provide advice on the activities of Departments and State bodies. I am thinking of the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, OGCIO, the Office of Government Procurement, the National Shared Services Office and the advisory services that the Minister of State mentioned. Yet, somehow, when it comes to IT projects, time and again, there are gross overspends and even project write-offs. Does the Minister of State accept there is a problem and that his Department has a role to play in addressing this? What is he going to do about it?
My Department provides broad governance, oversight and strategic supports for digital and ICT initiatives. The arrangements for the oversight of digital and ICT-related initiatives in the civil and public service require PSBs to obtain approval from my Department before commencing new digital or ICT initiatives, publishing procurement documentation or entering into commitments involving expenditure. These arrangements promote early engagement, support whole-of-government co-ordination and help to avoid duplication of investment. My Department also delivers a range of shared digital and ICT services for use across government, including government networks, the national low latency platform, a managed desktop and a government private cloud. There is a lot of good work going on. I thank the Deputy for her questions.
I do not know how the Minister of State can say there is early engagement when a €4.3 million Fórsa project was abandoned, an unaffordable affordable childcare ICT system exceeded its original estimate of €3.5 million by nearly 50%, and now, €30 million spent by Irish Rail has effectively been written off. These are just examples of the tens of millions of euro in taxpayers’ money that is as good as gone. I am not seeking to absolve the Accounting Officers of the responsibility but it is clearly widespread across Departments. It is a big problem. In the context of the Arts Council, some €5.3 million was written off. We saw a State body report its concerns. It tried to seek assistance from the Department but never got it and in return, the Department allowed it to flounder and did not give the help it was seeking. We found this out at the Committee of Public Accounts. There is a multimillion euro public expenditure crisis due to the lack of competence. More needs to be done. I ask the Minister of State to ensure the necessary reforms are introduced to end the unnecessary waste.
I take the Deputy’s valid concerns on board. While my Department provides extensive guidance, oversight and procurement supports, individual PSBs ultimately retain responsibility for determining the suitability of their requirements, governance arrangements, project delivery approaches and the successful implementation of ICT projects under their remit. There is support for the Public Appointments Service and for digital and ICT initiatives of significant scale, risk or strategic importance, including all projects with an estimated lifetime cost exceeding €5 million. The OGCIO operates a formal peer review process, which assesses governance, delivery approach, cost risks and alignment with wider public service strategies, and provides an independent challenge to ensure robust decision-making and, more importantly, value for money.
12. Deputy Edward Timmins asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the actions that have been taken to implement cost control in Departments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51538/26]
It may not be the most interesting subject, but it is probably the most important subject in the Minister’s brief, and that is the issue of cost control. What actions are being taken to implement cost control in Departments?
In December 2025, the Government published the medium-term fiscal and structural plan, which set out fixed expenditure ceilings for the period 2026 to 2030. This provides for significant uplifts in expenditure over the coming years, with gross voted spending to reach €147.3 billion in 2030. My Department has responsibility for developing expenditure policy in line with agreed Government objectives, including adhering to the expenditure ceilings set out in the plan. My Department establishes the governance frameworks, or rules, setting out the principles of how money should be spent to support sustainable increases in public expenditure.
These include the public financial procedures and infrastructure and procurement guidelines. These frameworks have been developed to promote the efficient, effective and sustainable application of resources.
In May, I published Circular 21/2026 relating to expenditure control and the escalation process. Issued to all Departments, it provides a clear framework for managing expenditure and sets out phases for escalation if spending overruns emerge. This escalation process is designed to be transparent and clear, setting out the different phases that can be taken to address overruns. It defines roles and responsibilities across Departments, ensuring strong accountability for expenditure management. Importantly, it is responsive to emerging spending pressures and enables timely and proportionate corrective actions where required.
Where expenditure pressures persist, the circular sets out a framework for when and how my Department will engage with others. These steps are focused around strengthening governance, reprioritising expenditure within Department allocations and ensuring that overruns are addressed in a timely manner. The circular also reiterates that responsibility for managing expenditure rests with each Department’s Accounting Officer.
As published, it refers to nine phases of expenditure controls. These could involve an expenditure oversight group all the way to examining non-pay pressures to pay pressures, if they emerge in a Department. It is about aligning budgetary allocations with priorities and ensuring that we get better delivery of budgets across Departments.
I thank the Minister for his response. We have interacted quite a bit at committee level on the same topic and will continue to do so. The starting point is a detailed, accurate and complete budget. This must be prepared on a zero-waste budgeting model where all costs must be justified and it is not just assumed that last year's budget funding is a given. This, then, must be closely monitored on a month-by-month basis so that cost overruns are discovered early and action is taken. How do we incentivise managers to save money?
Today, I met a constituent in my clinic who told me of two school buses going from one town to a special class in another town, both of which were less than half full. What is the motivation to stop this waste of money? School transport costs rose by 34%, or €162 million, this year, from €478 million last year to €641 million this year.
That is why we should have reforms in the Department of Education and Youth around how that operates more efficiently. It is the role of the Minister and Accounting Officer in that Department, to use that example in terms of efficiency in respect of school transport, to ensure that we do not have duplication or two half-empty buses when there could be one. That is something that should be examined by the Department of Education and Youth to drive value for money.
We have been clear in the value for money obligations we have set out, as published in Circular 18/2025 around value for money obligations for all civil and public servants, and that is essential. We have moved away from the system of existing level of service, ELS, plus additionality, which we discussed with the Deputy at the budgetary oversight committee, to ensure that we examine the total base of spend through the Estimates process, something we did last year and will do again with a greater focus for budget 2027. The expenditure levy will drive greater efficiencies and reforms and incentivise those in the context of a moderating increase in current expenditure.
I will list some specific items, but the list is not exhaustive. Regarding funding given to quangos, can we review whether there is overlap between these organisations and if the Government is funding them to do the same things? Can we use the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, to do more work on bid rigging prevention? Do all Departments publish reports on overtime, the cost of agency staff and consultancy costs? This should be the norm.
Is there a cost control champion in each Department? Can we expand digital services to reduce processing times, paperwork and costs, increase the use of electronic records and reduce unnecessary printing and brochure costs? We should use data and KPIs to monitor the cost and outcomes of services, encourage the use of shared buildings and dispose of underused properties to reduce overheads and waste. Finally, there are any number of things that can be done and I am sure some are already being done, but we must strive to continuously improve and motivate the wonderful people who work in our public service to reduce spending that is growing too quickly.
We want to digitalise our public services, drive efficiencies and advance reforms, and that is a necessity. In everything we are doing in the escalation framework and implementing cost controls in respect of Departments, it is all about efficiency, how we improve productivity, digitalise more and, ultimately, build better public services for people who want to see them improve. People want to see the endpoint of the increased expenditure the Deputy referenced to ensure that the outputs improve and the impacts are better. We are focused on how we improve delivery. That is our wider focus and why we have moved away from the model used in previous years to one that better serves a focus on efficiency and reform. That will be a key part of the Estimates process.
14. Deputy Joe Neville asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation if his Department has outlined any projects under the Critical Infrastructure Act 2026 yet to be given priority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51548/26]
The Critical Infrastructure Act 2026 provides a statutory basis for the acceleration of decision-making regarding projects and programmes that are designated as critical infrastructure. The Act requires that all reasonable steps be taken by public bodies, individually and collectively, to progress any functions that they may have in regard to these projects and programmes as quickly as possible.
Section 1 of the Act specifically highlights transport, energy and water infrastructure in the definition of infrastructure. However, it does not limit the potential to include other infrastructure, should it be considered necessary.
Section 3 of the Act sets out how projects or programmes will be designated as critical infrastructure. In summary, the Minister for public expenditure will make a recommendation to the Government in respect of the designation of an individual project or programme. The Government will consider the recommendation and, if approved, an order designating the project or programme as critical infrastructure will be laid before the Dáil. Provision is also made to allow the Dáil to annul any order laid before it.
This section also sets out those factors that I as Minister may have regard to in making a recommendation to the Government. These are as follows: the need to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of a project or programme; whether delay to, or disruption of, the delivery of a project or programme or failure to deliver a project or programme would have adverse economic or social consequences for the State; whether a project or programme may impact in a positive or negative manner on the delivery of any specific programme; the national development plan; and other matters that the Minister may consider appropriate.
When I bring an initial recommendation to the Government, my focus will be on a small number of critical projects or programmes in the energy, transport and water sectors, with a particular focus on those projects that will benefit the most from an immediate designation. That has yet to happen, but I expect it will in the coming weeks.
I thank the Minister for his response and clarity. Since he has come into his role, he has been very strong in pushing for the need to speed up infrastructure. Through successful economic handling of the State, we have money to spend, which is the most important thing. Of course, we have to spend it wisely and ensure we have infrastructure.
I am Leas-Chathaoirleach of the infrastructure committee, which has MetroLink before it tomorrow, the exact type of project the Minister might have in mind. I do not want to pre-empt anything. At the same time, that is the key sort of project we need, along with a DART+ West. My colleague to my left would love to have the same facility in DART+ South West.
The population of the State has grown quite rapidly and we need to build critical infrastructure. I look forward to areas being designated and accountability and transparency for projects.
I appreciate all of Deputy Neville's inputs on the wider reforms we have advanced. We expect to have an initial designation for a small number of projects and will then set out a process around how that will happen. The focus is on the projects that can benefit from an immediate designation and how they can be accelerated quickly. Some projects are on lists and going through particular processes, but are not necessarily ready for designation. That process is concluding for a small number of projects that will benefit. We are focused on driving delivery of anything that is designated. That work is being finalised in my Department and I will then have to bring a recommendation to the Government.
As I said, I am delighted that the Minister is considering pursuing this matter and that we will have decisions on some of these projects quickly. It is very important that critical infrastructure is developed. We know we must get it built. Projects like DART+ North West are coming in both our areas. We need to ensure they are developed as rapidly as possible.
In bringing through a Bill like this, the real question is what it ultimately looks like in reality. The best way to see that is in how the examples stack up behind it. That is when we really will see the impact of the legislation. As a country, this is something with which we have struggled. In fairness, the UK is no different, as are other countries in the western world, in terms of struggling to build infrastructure. It is great to have legislation in place to help us to do that. As I said, the ultimate proof will be when these areas are designated and we see how they develop.
I absolutely agree. It is about the cumulative impact of all the reforms, including cutting out some of the process at the earlier stage, the external insurance process, which saved half a year, and some of the regulatory reforms we have introduced, with a 30% time saving under the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority, for example, for marine licensing. The wider regulatory reforms ensure we have a better balance in terms of the legal system, including in respect of judicial reviews and the environmental legal fees caps. The 30 actions, cumulatively, will bring real delivery to our system and will make a real difference.
The Act is a really important part of that in terms of driving delivery when projects can be designated. Again, we are working with the wider regulatory and delivery system to ensure it is prepared to drive progress across many of those projects. I am confident that for many of the projects, instead of a sense of endless delay, we will see real acceleration in the period ahead.
11. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the progress made to date under national strategic outcome, NSO, No. 6 of the National Development Plan 2021-2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51367/26]
Question No. 11 is in the name of Deputy Fleming. With prior approval, it will be asked by Deputy Shane Moynihan.
Táim ag glacadh leis an gceist seo thar ceann an Teachta Moynihan. Will the Minister outline the progress made to date under NSO No. 6 of the national development plan to 2030?
As Minister, I am responsible for setting the overall capital allocations across Departments and monitoring monthly expenditure at departmental level. The NDP review was published in July last year, with Departments subsequently publishing sectoral investment plans setting out the capital projects to be prioritised out to 2030. Furthermore, the Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan, which was published in December 2025, outlined a range of reforms to speed up delivery of critical infrastructure across Ireland to support the realisation of the funding allocated under the NDP and to optimise delivery.
NSO No. 6 deals with the delivery of high-quality international connectivity. The relevant sectoral strategies include the national aviation policy, the national ports policy and the telecommunications chapter of the national marine planning framework, which relates to international telecommunications connectivity.
In terms of our airports, a range of investments are planned and under way. Dublin Airport has announced a major programme of improvements, which include enhanced operational capacity to manage more than 120,000 passengers per day. The Shannon Airport Group continues to implement its investment plan, including upgrades to airport infrastructure such as new research and development engineering and manufacturing units. Waterford Airport is undergoing a transformative investment to be completed by the summer of 2027.
In relation to ports, the Port of Cork's Ringaskiddy development, container terminal, CCT, 2 project, is under way, which will see the redevelopment and extension of the existing facility to accommodate larger sea vessels and increase port capacity. The Shannon Foynes Port Company is progressing with capacity extensions at the port. Co-funded by the EU, this further strengthens freight and trade and establishes the estuary as a global offshore wind hub. Dublin Port is actively implementing its masterplan 2040 to ensure sustainable growth and long-term capacity planning.
Further details of projects and programmes being delivered under NSO No. 6 are published as part of our investment tracker of projects with a cost greater than €20 million. In addition, the sectoral plans published by Departments at the end of 2025 set out the planned investment cycle of projects, by county, across the country. Those plans are available from the relevant Departments.
I thank the Minister for his very comprehensive response. I am glad to see progress is being made on a number of fronts, including aviation, port policy and digital connectivity. The first part of this question asks how confident we are that these projects are now future-proofed in terms of the next 30- or 40-year cycle. The Minister has spoken at length about some of the bottlenecks that exist in the economy arising out of the massive growth we have seen in our population over time. With the continued success of the economy and the continued identification of Ireland as an international hub, connectivity becomes all the more important.
I am particularly keen to hear the Minister's thoughts on how we can improve digital connectivity. Ireland is a global data and technology hub. Subsea connectivity is extremely important to us as well. What plans are being laid out under NSO No. 6 with regard to improving overall connectivity from the subsea infrastructure point of view? Are those plans being future-proofed with an eye to 2050, 2070 and 2090 to ensure we maintain our status as a global technology and data hub?
We have been clear about the absolute necessity to protect the huge ecosystem of digital and infrastructure investment in Ireland over the past ten to 20 years. Part of that has been the wider and ongoing discussion on the security of subsea cables. In terms of our immediate capital plans, the Department of communications, when it comes to digital infrastructure, has been prioritising the nationwide roll-out of the national broadband plan, particularly in terms of rural broadband and connectivity. Any longer-term approaches to digital connectivity in terms of State intervention regarding subsea cables is something we would have to consider as part of a future national development plan. We want to continue to embed digital infrastructure and the technology investment that exists in Ireland to promote jobs. That is a key part of NSO No. 6.
In addition to the wider capacity the Deputy mentioned-----
I will allow the Minister to come back in after Deputy Moynihan's contribution.
I accept the role of the State with regard to global subsea connectivity. I have a two-part question on aviation and port capacity. Are all the NSO No. 6 projects the Minister expects to be completed by 2030 on track? Second, what sort of thinking is there in terms of future-proofing for Dublin Airport and Dublin Port? Is the Minister confident there is sufficient headroom for both to grow if we continue to see the amount of connectivity and the volume of trade and passengers coming into the country that we are seeing at the moment?
This is a pro-enterprise Government that wants to grow our economy. Critical to that is our airport and port capacity. Dublin Port's masterplan drives increased port capacity out to 2040. There is a separate wider discussion on additional east coast capacity, which I think we will require in the medium to long term in addition to Dublin Port, the capacity of which will be constrained. We need to drive its infrastructure plan efficiently.
There have been constraints and planning complexity at Dublin Airport in recent years but the work by the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, has ensured we lifted the cap. There is a significant capital plan for the airport, some of which is in the planning system and some of which is built out around a major programme of improvements. Ensuring the long-term viability of the airport is very much connected to its being a transatlantic hub, which requires advancing some of the more long-term plans to expand some its piers. There is a real opportunity there. With some of the operational constraints removed, the airport can really drive that delivery. The second runway, which was built during the previous Government's term, offers huge opportunities for additional growth and connectivity.
13. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the progress made to date under NSO No. 4 of the National Development Plan 2021-2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51359/26]
Question No. 13 is in the name of Deputy Ó Fearghaíl but will be asked by Deputy Shane Moynihan.
This question is on the progress to date on delivering NSO No. 4, which relates to sustainable transport and mobility.
I will not tell the Deputy again about how I am responsible for setting the overall capital allocations, as outlined in the reply in front of me. I will proceed instead to address the question itself, which is about NSO No. 4. This objective is about investing in high-quality sustainable transport and mobility to improve quality of life for all our citizens, support our transition to a low-carbon society and enhance our economic competitiveness.
The Department of Transport published the national investment framework for transport in Ireland, NIFTI, in 2021, which sets out the prioritisation for future investment in the land transport network. The right transport investment helps to deliver high-quality travel and supports positive outcomes for society, the environment and the economy. Investment in NSO No. 4 projects set out in Project Ireland 2040 include the DART+ programme, which is a series of projects that will create a full metropolitan area DART+ network for Dublin, with all the lines linked and connected.
An Coimisiún Pleanála has approved the railway order application for DART+ Coastal North. The procurement process has commenced for a design and build contractors. Once the contractors have been appointed, a period of detailed design will commence followed by construction. Since the previous NDP, there has been significant progress on MetroLink, including most recently the positive planning decision by An Coimisiún Pleanála, as well as the NDP’s allocation of €2 billion from the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund to ensure MetroLink moves forward to construction within the lifetime of this NDP.
BusConnects is an investment programme designed to fundamentally transform the bus systems in our major cities, so that journeys for passengers by bus will be fast, reliable, punctual, convenient and affordable. There are 12 bus corridor applications for Dublin and construction on the first of these routes from Liffey Valley to the city centre has commenced with a completion date of 2028. The National Transport Authority is in the process of developing cycling plans for each county under the CycleConnects plan. Further details of projects and programmes being delivered under NSO 4 are with an estimated cost of greater than €20 million are published on the investment tracker.
I thank the Minister. It is right to say that huge progress is being seen on delivery of transport infrastructure across the country. The Liffey Valley to city centre bus corridor that he mentioned is the route I cycle to Leinster House most days. I see the active progress there. I am hopeful that it will be delivered on time, if not ahead of schedule. Like the Minister, I am a TD for a Dublin constituency where population density is increasing at a rapid pace, and rightly so and it is important that we provide housing for our people but it also important that we provide the transport system to underpin that. Progress on MetroLink is very welcome. The DART+ programme is very close to my heart. I have engaged with the Minister and the Minister for Transport in particular on this. It would be remiss of me with this opportunity not to advocate for the DART+ South West programme to be accelerated as much as it can. I am very pleased to see DART+ Coastal North and DART+ West will be moved along quite promptly. DART+ South West is particularly important, given the amount of housing now being delivered in Clonburris and Adamstown, in particular.
I appreciate the Deputy's advocacy and input on the DART+ and DART+ South West programmes. We want to deliver many of these projects over the next number of years. That is why the continued uplift of transport investment is essential. On a positive note, we are seeing many of these projects move out of the planning system now to allow us to move to procurement for BusConnects and DART+. The Deputy referenced the importance of delivering this low-carbon transport in terms of housing supply and ensuring that a lot of the homes that are planned for some of the DART+ lines are built in line with our wider public transport investment.
The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, is managing the annualised allocations from a transport perspective. He is working with the NTA to maximise that investment opportunity and deliver as much as possible across the NDP.
That is right. We are on the same page regarding the need to put these public transport systems in place as the houses are being built so that the private car is not the default option for a lot of these people moving into these homes. That is why I am keen to continue to lobby the NTA. I am pleased that it has opened a consultation on new bus routes for Clonburris and Adamstown. Those developments were not built at the design of the original BusConnects phase. That is somewhere we need to address. There are many other developments like that not only in Dublin, but around the country, where bus stops need to be put in and routes at the same time, as opposed to waiting for the demand to manifest itself. We know the demand will be there. We know people will move into those homes. From day one, let us give them an option of public transport. That may not necessarily be a heavy rail system like DART+ South West, though I am hopeful we will be able to move quickly on that. It is important that we put the bus services in place. I hope the Minister will support me and other colleagues in lobbying the NTA to move quite quickly in delivering amendments to the BusConnects plan that enhance additionality and respond to the new population settlements forming in Dublin and around the country.
I agree. BusConnects should continue to evolve, particularly with increased development in parts of west Dublin and elsewhere. It should future-proof development as it is occurring. I support the Deputy on that. The NTA needs to be developing that real-time adjustment to BusConnects so that we future-proof our bus system for residential development, which is being built out in certain areas. The NTA needs to prioritise that. We should not leave any new community islanded without bus connectivity. BusConnects needs to advance in parallel with the wider development. I have seen certain issues in my own constituency where people do not have the level of connectivity I believe they should have in certain parts of it and maybe in terms of frequency and reliability. That is a shared objective across our two constituencies.
17. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation to provide an update on the South Galway Flood Relief Project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50877/26]
I ask the Minister to provide an update on the south Galway flood relief project and a timeline for delivery of this scheme, which is critical to protect homes in the area.
The Office of Public Works, OPW, and Galway County Council are working together on the development of the south Galway, Gort lowlands, flood relief scheme with Galway County Council acting as the lead authority. Gort lowlands catchment is a karst landscape with a combination of underground water, river water, groundwater, swallow holes and turloughs. It is unique at an international level from an ecological perspective. Due to the complex nature of the area, Trinity College Dublin and Geological Survey Ireland have been contributing to the development of the scheme's design. They are working alongside the engineering and environmental consultants who were procured to develop a viable scheme design.
There has been a significant amount of public and stakeholder consultation for the scheme and Galway County Council and the OPW are presenting the emerging preferred option. The scheme, when completed, is expected to provide protection to 115 properties: 50 residential and 65 commercial.
Environmental assessments are currently being undertaken for the preferred option, which involves an integrated mechanism to effectively move water through overflow channels across the turloughs in this area. The specific nature of these assessments are being informed by discussions with the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS. The timeframe for the consent submission depends on the ongoing environmental survey results and the outcome of the NPWS engagement. Should planning for the scheme be granted, Galway County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, will re-engage on the matter of culvert capacity, which came to light while the M18 motorway was under construction.
As the Minister of State will be aware, flooding in south Galway caused devastation in previous years. This scheme has been on the cards for a long time. There is frustration locally at the slow pace of delivery and that communities in the area continue to be left exposed as a result. The weather has become more changeable and extreme. We have seen the impact that flooding has had in the south-east in recent times as well. There is a real fear in south Galway that the longer this drags on, the more it increases the likelihood of a severe event impacting the area again. The last timeframe I was given for submission of the scheme for planning was quarter 4 2026. That had been pushed back a number of times but now in my most recent questions to the Minister of State's office, that timeline has disappeared completely. Now, there seems to be no timeline for the project and that is concerning.
I appreciate that this is complex environmentally but it is extremely urgent. People's homes and livelihoods are at stake. Will the Minister of State give a renewed timeline today and an assurance to the community?
I understand the Deputy's frustration and that of the people in the Gort lowlands. This is a very complex scheme. It is one of the most complex we have in the country. When we talk about swallow holes, turloughs and underground water, it is very complex. That is why we have the experts in the field working on this. Like the Deputy and everyone else, I get frustrated but I understand when I meet the consultants and officials in my Department that the delays are necessary. We get one chance to get a scheme right and this is one of them. While there is frustration about delays in the scheme, I assure the Deputy that I have put my full resources into trying to deliver this scheme. I have also given the local authorities funding for an executive engineer to drive these schemes on. It is not always the case that the OPW is delaying it; we are not. We are working collectively with Galway County Council in this case and with the people. We have had a number of consultations and I will continue to engage with the Deputy and others. I have been invited down to a meeting there shortly. Like the Deputy, I want to be able to deliver good, positive messages to the people.
We are over time but I will allow the Deputy back in briefly.
I acknowledge that Galway County Council's engineers are doing great work on this. The south Galway flood relief committee has documented the issues and delays the scheme has faced. The Minister of State mentioned the NPWS engagement. That was originally scoped just around one technical question on the flow controls but that has since seemed to have blown up into a full environmental review of the scheme. It has dragged on for 18 months. A timeline needs to be put on this to bring it to a conclusion.
As has been mentioned, the committee there is keen to meet the Minister of State, go through these issues and discuss them with him. I hope that can be facilitated. I hope we can progress this as quickly as possible and get a renewed timeline in place because it is so important to protect the homes and businesses in the area.
This is a complex scheme but as the Deputy is aware, I made changes to the minor works scheme to allow local authorities to look at measures to facilitate them and the funding is there in that regard. That could be looked at. I make the point to the Deputy that we are so advanced on the scheme and it is so complex - I agree with the Deputy on that - that we have to allow the experts on the ground to deliver on these schemes. I would love to rush it through. I would love to say that to the Deputy but I cannot. I have been down there and have witnessed first-hand what has happened in that part of the country but it is no different to what is happening all over the country. People say we are taking too long but we have one chance to get it right. It is frustrating given the length of time it is taking but I assure the Deputy that my Department and I are working with the experts to deliver on this scheme. It is something we want to see ourselves.
