Minister Chambers must explain details of his new infrastructure taskforce – Mairéad Farrell TD

Sinn Féin spokesperson on Public Expenditure and Reform, Mairéad Farrell TD, has said Minister Jack Chambers must clarify why he needs a new expert group and what will become of the existing one – the Construction Sector Group.

Deputy Farrell was responding to reports that, Ministers Jack Chambers and Peter Burke have both announced that they are bringing memos to Cabinet to outline how they plan to speed up and improve infrastructure delivery in the state via a new strategy.

The Galway TD said given that an expert taskforce has been in place since 2018, both Ministers must demonstrate how this is more than just an exercise in optics.

Teachta Farrell said:

“When then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar first announced the launch of the CSG in 2017 he stated it was ‘whole of construction’ strategy designed to bring the industry together with various Government Departments in a more cohesive way than seen previously.

“Minister Pascal Donohue said at the time ‘This plan represents a unique opportunity to set out an ambitious vision and 20-year strategy.’

“Well, here we are 8 years on from that and they seem to be launching a new strategy? Is that an acceptance that the last one failed? Have they done any serious introspection into why it failed? Or is it just a case of ‘let’s move on as quickly as possible’?

“For most people that “new” strategy back in 2017 ended up looking very much like the old one. Here we are eight years later, and it sounds like we are once again in store for more big announcements, much fanfare, glossy documents and then business as usual.

“Minister Chambers has said that this new expert task force will include ‘Uisce Éireann, Eirgrid, ESB and Transport Infrastructure Ireland to assist in identifying and dealing with blockages and barriers that slow the development of strategic infrastructure’. Would it not make more sense to bring these public bodies into the CSG?

“When ESB were before the Housing Committee in the last Dáil, they said that ‘ESB Networks has regular meetings with both the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) and its associated organisation, the Irish Home Builders Association (IHBA)’. The CIF is one of the core members of the CSG.

“So, I can’t for the life of me understand what this is all about?

“Are we to have two separate taskforces both dealing with the same issue?

“We have had a serious lack of infrastructure investment in the West of Ireland. We need a lot more than a new taskforce being setup, particularly when the taskforce already exists.

“This kind of social media approach to infrastructure delivery improvement is incredibly frustrating for people in the West of Ireland.”