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Minister Donohoe chairs meeting of Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board at WorkIQ in the Tallaght Innovation Quarter

The Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, Paschal Donohoe, today (26 June) chaired a meeting of the Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board at WorkIQ in the Tallaght Innovation Quarter.

As Chair of the Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board, the Minister’s primary focus is on measures that can assist in removing bottlenecks to delivering on the priorities outlined in the National Development Plan (NDP). The Board has discussed a range of issues to date such as the backlog in planning applications and the restructuring of An Bord Pleanála to An Coimisiún Pleanála.

Today’s meeting was held at WorkIQ in the Tallaght Innovation Quarter, a newly completed Council-owned workspace building providing a managed and supported workspace for up to 60 tech start-up businesses. This project received funding under the NDP from the Urban and Regeneration Development Fund. The Board also had the opportunity to visit a number of transformational projects that are helping to deliver the next stage of Tallaght’s growth and which are receiving funding directly from the Council and various government funding supports. Highlights from today’s meeting included a presentation from Colm Ward, Chief Executive, South Dublin County Council on NDP projects in the Tallaght area and from Michael Nolan, Chair of the Major Projects Advisory Group who updated the Board on their work.

Speaking today, Minister Donohoe said:

"The National Development Plan (NDP) is central to delivering the vital infrastructure we need to support our future economic and social requirements, as well as our climate change commitments. I was delighted to chair an off-site meeting of the Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board at the Tallaght Innovation Quarter today to see at first-hand a range of exciting and innovative projects that are being delivered under the National Development Plan – including and an affordable cost rental Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) apartment building at Belgard Square and the Tallaght Stadium Fourth Stand. My thanks to Colm Ward, Chief Executive, South Dublin County Council for hosting us today at the very impressive WorksIQ building.

"Government is investing €165 billion up to 2030 under the NDP. In addition, in March I was happy to announce the allocation of an additional €2.25 billion in capital expenditure out to 2026. The overall level of capital funding is at an all-time high. In 2024, €13 billion is being made available for investment to provide more schools, social housing schemes, roads, Garda stations, Primary Care Centres and libraries that will make a real difference in delivering better public services.

"The NDP projects that we viewed today are only a small selection of the range of NDP projects delivered since Project Ireland 2040 was first launched in 2018. This government has overseen the delivery of many impactful NDP projects across the country including major third-level building projects such as the new university campus in Grangegorman as well as better transport links including upgrades on the N4 from Collooney to Castlebaldwin, from Gort to Tuam on the N17/N18 and the Dunkettle Interchange Upgrade.

"The government is committed to continuing to deliver our ambitions in line with the NDP –building more houses, building more schools and other vital public infrastructure that will improve the quality of life for everyone living in Ireland.

"I look forward to continued positive engagement with the Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board as we work together to boost NDP delivery over the coming years as we reshape our country’s economic and social future in a sustainable and climate-friendly manner, thus enabling a low-carbon future.”

Mr Colm Ward, Chief Executive of South Dublin County Council said:

“We are delighted to welcome Minister Donohoe and the Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board to Tallaght today to highlight the impact of government support and funding for initiatives being delivered in South Dublin. As well as hosting the meeting in the new Work IQ centre within the emerging Innovation Quarter in Tallaght Town Centre, we also showcased the recently completed Tallaght Stadium expansion, Heatworks, Ireland’s first district heating scheme and the first direct local authority cost rental project nationally at Belgard North, all connected by high-quality new public realm and permeability works. These projects demonstrate our commitment to working with key partners in Government to build a sustainable future for our County aligned to the Project 2040 vision.”

Notes

Project Ireland 2040

Project Ireland 2040 is the government’s long-term overarching strategy to make Ireland a better country for all its people. The plan changes how investment is made in public infrastructure in Ireland, moving away from the approach of the past, which saw public investment spread too thinly and investment decisions that did not align with a well-thought-out and defined strategy. Alongside the development of physical infrastructure, Project Ireland 2040 supports business and communities across all of Ireland in realising their potential.

The National Development Plan 2021 - 2030 sets out departmental allocations to 2025 and a total public investment of €165 billion over the period 2021-2030. As set out in the Summer Economic Statement (SES) 2023, an additional €2.25 billion of capital funding was made available to be allocated in the 2024 to 2026 period. Allocation of this additional funding was agreed in March 2024. This funding will facilitate the progression of important projects and enable more rapid development of key Programme for Government commitments, such as the delivery of actions to fulfil our climate action plan commitments, the provision of more housing and enhanced education facilities. It is estimated that an annual average of up to approximately 47,000 direct and 33,000 indirect construction jobs will be sustained over the course of the NDP.

Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board

Revised terms of reference (May 2023)

The Project Ireland 2040 Delivery Board is a non-statutory board to:

  • provide strategic direction and leadership to the National Development Plan (NDP) and National Planning Framework (NPF) implementation process, including communication of Project Ireland 2040
  • monitor and oversee implementation structures and performance in each sector to ensure a co-ordinated and collaborative approach to NDP and NPF delivery across Government
  • oversee progress and performance across all sectors, particularly in relation to major projects and programmes (+€200 million)
  • identify system wide responses to resolve any significant cross-cutting issues arising from NDP and NPF implementation
  • oversee the impact of planning reforms on major project delivery and oversee mitigations for skills shortages and opportunities for upskilling/reskilling
  • monitor the work of the Construction Sector Group Innovation and Digital Adoption Subgroup, which sets out to boost productivity in the sector
  • recommend options for the reallocation of funding resources within the NDP capital envelope if/where appropriate, for example, to compensate for delays arising or rescheduling of funding requirements on some major projects, with a view to optimising overall delivery of NPF objectives

The over-riding purpose of this system is to ensure visibility in relation to NDP progress in line with National Planning Framework principles, in order to optimise the use of the NDP funding to deliver on the NPF objectives. The Board will complement, and not displace, existing responsibilities for efficient resource management or accountability for financial management.

The Board will meet every quarter, and may form sub-groups drawn from departments and agencies, if necessary/appropriate.

Membership

The Delivery Board will be chaired by the Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform.

The Delivery Board will have the following membership:

Secretaries General or equivalent of the following government departments:

DPENDR, DHLGH and DFHERIS.

External Members (current):

  • Ms Mary Hughes - a Chartered Town Planner with in excess of 25 years’ experience
  • Mr PJ Rudden - Chair of Construction Sector Group (CSG) Innovation and Digital Adoption and a past President of Engineers Ireland
  • Mr Sean O’Driscoll - Chairman of the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) and former Chairman and Chief Executive of the Glen Dimplex Group, and a former Partner in KPMG
  • Ms Terry Prendergast - a professional planner, member of the Irish Planning Institute and a former Board Member with An Bord Pleanála
  • Mr Thomas Barrett - Currently senior non-resident Fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC, formerly senior official at the European Investment Bank

Individual departments will be required to present on key sectoral project and programme delivery, and to set out firm timelines for delivery, with Secretaries General and Heads of Agencies to be invited to report on major projects as required.

Reporting

The Delivery Board will report to Government through a quarterly Memo for Government from MPENDR.