2026-04-16

8. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation for an overview of the progress made to date under National Strategic Outcome (NSO) 10 of the National Development Plan 2021-2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27479/26]

As the Minister knows, chapter 15 of the national development plan is titled "Access to Quality Childcare, Education and Health Services". With an increasing demand for places across those three sectors, it is absolutely essential that we have that increased investment put to use as quickly as possible. We need increased facilities in rural and urban Ireland. I sincerely hope that the money allocated can be spent as quickly as possible and that we do not have the type of interminable delays which have occurred over the years in respect of so many worthwhile projects.

In the 2021 review of the national development plan, the Government originally committed to €165 billion of investment out to 2030. Subsequently, in March 2024, it agreed to an additional €2.25 billion out to 2026. The revised development plan sets out over €275 billion of public capital investment out to 2035, the largest and most significant capital injection into the economy in the history of the State. Following the agreement in July 2025, gross capital expenditure ceilings have now been set out. While we have prioritised investment towards critical growth-enabling sectors of housing, energy, water and transport, all Departments have prepared sectoral plans for the five years out to 2030. They have set out detail around projects to be progressed. NSO 10, as the Deputy mentioned, refers to quality childcare, education and health services. The Government has allocated over €7.55 billion to education projects over the next number of years, with €795 million to the Department of children and €9.25 billion to the Department of Health over the next five years. This will be hugely important to build the social infrastructure the Deputy mentioned, which is so important to communities across our country. We have set out the detail around that in the context of the health service, building out many of the education projects, particularly in the special education area, and also the Department of children, which the Minister, Deputy Foley, is advancing. NSO 10 is reflected in the capital investment tracker, which provides a comprehensive update of the progress of all major investments with an estimated cost of greater than €20 million. It sets out the county-specific basis, specifically for investments in schools and health facilities relating to NSO 10. It is not only about what we allocate, but also about what we deliver and how quickly we can deliver it. That is why I am putting as much focus on reforming how we deliver infrastructure as I am on what to allocate to where.

I thank the Minister for his reply. I heard him speak at the recent meeting of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly. He said that in far too many instances over the years process won out over delivery with regard to the capital programmes for different Departments. I refer to the childcare sector in particular. With the Minister's approval, the Minister, Deputy Foley, recently introduced the building blocks grant scheme towards the provision of new childcare places and the upgrading of existing facilities. That is a very worthwhile programme. The Minister, Deputy Foley, recently visited my constituency, where she met some of the providers who have availed of the building blocks grant scheme and others who urgently need to increase capacity or to upgrade existing capacity. That scheme needs additional investment. The Minister may recall that, between 2004 and 2008, his predecessor in Dublin West, our colleague the late Brian Lenihan and I were both were both Ministers of State with responsibility for children. At that time, we were providing grant aid in excess of €1 million for new childcare facilities. During that four- to five-year period, massive and necessary development took place in the country to build a whole new infrastructure of childcare facilities, both through the community sector and private providers. We need a repeat of that today.

I know about the significant work undertaken by that Government. Even in more difficult economic times, the then Minister of State, Barry Andrews, introduced an important initiative on the affordability of childcare, which has been built on in recent years. That was a central part of the work undertaken with the Minister, Deputy Foley, as part of the revised national development plan. The €750 million allocated to the Department of children is aimed at enabling the Minister to do more in the context of capital investment in childcare. There is a need to work with childcare and education settings. In light of the demographic shift that is happening in Ireland in the medium to long term, there is an important opportunity to use our school facilities. That is happening in many communities. We need to co-ordinate capital investment from the Department of children for separate community childcare facilities and to work with schools to utilise existing facilities. That co-ordination is ongoing. I share the Deputy's objective of doing more. That is why the Minister for children, Deputy Foley, received a significant allocation under the national development plan.

The need for additional childcare places is replicated in small areas. I am working with groups in small parishes and villages such as the Denn Toddlers Playgroup in Crosskeys, County Cavan, and Happy Days Childcare in Belturbet, County Cavan. Crosskeys is a small village and Belturbet is a small town but they have huge demand for additional places, as the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach will know. It is therefore extremely important that the building blocks scheme be expanded, if at all possible. There is a similar situation in disability services. There are two particular needs in my constituency. There is a need to considerably expand the Drumlin House Training Centre. I am very glad that substantial capital funding has been approved in respect of that development. In addition, there is the day activation unit in Cavan town, which provides day services for young adults with complex needs. At present, it is in totally unsuitable accommodation. Again, I am very glad that the HSE, in conjunction with the Department of children, is advancing that project. However, again and again, despite the best efforts of HSE officials at local level, it takes far too long to get projects to construction. I sincerely hope the Minister can get that message through to every Department and agency. Process must not win out over delivery.

I absolutely agree. That is central to what we are doing in reforming infrastructure delivery. We are aiming to cut out as much process as possible and to put delivery at the centre. That is why 34 of the 35 actions set out for implementation in the first quarter as part of our infrastructure reforms have been delivered. The other is to be delivered imminently. It is the same in the second quarter. We are working every day to drive improved delivery, to reduce process, to rebalance regulation and to ensure that delivery is at the centre of everything we do in every area of social and economic infrastructure. That will yield improved delivery in childcare and in wider areas across the economy. I will work with the Minister, Deputy Foley, to ensure her sectoral investment plan in the Department of children is advanced quickly. I know she has worked extensively to ensure the €795 million allocated across the next five years yields that improved delivery of childcare across communities and across the country.