Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 January 2026
433. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the legal status of the ‘administrative guidance’ proposed under action 23 of the ‘Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan’; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4242/26]
View answer434. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the reason he is proposing that timelines for projects going through the infrastructure guidelines process would only be laid out as ‘administrative guidance’, rather than as statutory timelines, as proposed under action 23 of the ‘Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan’;; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4243/26]
View answer435. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the consequences for Departments that fail to meet new timelines, set out in administrative guidance, for advancing capital projects under the infrastructure guidelines, following the implementation of the changes proposed under action 23 of the ‘Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan’; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4244/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 433, 434 and 435 together.
As referred to by Deputy O'Gorman, Action 23 in the Accelerating Infrastructure report commits the Government to streamline and speed up the project approvals process by amending the Infrastructure Guidelines. In line with sub action 23 (i) (to be undertaken by Q1 2026), my Department is proposing to issue a circular in the coming weeks to give effect to the changes set out in the action plan. The specific immediate changes to the Infrastructure Guidelines are as follows:
In relation to Major Projects, the threshold will increase from €200m to €500m for sectors with a well established track record of delivery;
The External Assurance Process (EAP) will be replaced with a streamlined and time-bound internal review by the major projects unit in the Infrastructure Division of my Department; and
Major projects at Approval Gate 2 will no longer need Ministerial approval and may now be approved solely by the Accounting Officer of the Government Department that is funding the proposed project.
The specific chapters of the Infrastructure Guidelines where amendments are required will then be updated in 2026 to reflect this as well as further recommendations within the Action Plan including the recommendation to introduce administrative guidance on timelines for Preliminary Business Case (PBC) preparation (3–6 months) and mandate a maximum length. Officials in my Department will be engaging with sectoral experts in other departments prior to issuing guidance on this.
Allied to this action, my Department is also committing to deliver key legislative reforms that will mandate whole-of-State cooperation for projects of a critical nature, through the delivery of a Critical Infrastructure Bill under Action 2 of the report. As identified in the report, this Bill will explore options during drafting for incorporating statutory timelines, positive presumptions, and other measures to reduce procedural delays.
In relation to holding sectors to account, the report also identifies administrative reforms will strengthen my Department's role in providing greater visibility to Government on the status of projects, planning timelines, and judicial review activity. This enhanced oversight will support the early identification of barriers and facilitate targeted interventions. As set out under Action 19 of the report, the preparation of this information, in the form of project tracker reports and infrastructure dashboard metrics will support the Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure and NDP Delivery with data-driven insights and recommendations to drive accountability across the public sector delivery entities.
Considering the broad range of actions set out in the Accelerating Infrastructure report, the intent of the Programme for Government commitments will be delivered and my Department will lead on the programme of reducing procedural delays within infrastructural delivery sectors.
