Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 February 2026
29. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation if he will report on the first meeting of the Joint Utilities and Transport Clearing House to Accelerate Infrastructure Delivery; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10567/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraAction 21 of the https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/a1ef9433/Accelerating_Infrastructure_Report_and_Action_Plan.pdfaims to improve utility coordination at both a local and national level. The Joint Utilities and Transport Clearing House has been established to support the achievement of this goal.
The Clearing House brings together the lead Government Departments responsible for infrastructure with utilities, transport authorities, and representatives of local Government, to establish a structured forum where issues affecting the coordination and timely delivery of infrastructure can be discussed and resolved. The group has a clear mandate that will allow it to identify and address any structures and processes across Government that may impede the delivery of critical infrastructure. The initial work of the Clearing House will focus on identifying and addressing the most pressing administrative barriers to infrastructure development.
I addressed the first meeting of the JUTCH on 18th December, where we discussed the objectives and Terms of Reference of the group along with the draft work programme.
The following priority actions were identified:
Compile a list of key issues and bottlenecks based on input from clearing house representatives.
Identify existing working groups across the utility sectors that can be leveraged in solving identified bottlenecks, before creating new structures.
Following the mapping and identification of key issues, the work of the group will be focused on developing and implementing solutions to the strategic issues as identified.
The next meeting is scheduled for February 26th.
