The National Development Plan, discussed at a Cabinet meeting yesterday, will reportedly invest €115bn in infrastructure over the next ten years, according to Goodbody Stockbrokers.

The capital investment plan will be published alongside the National Planning Framework in the coming weeks, which intends to inform all planning and infrastructure strategies to 2040, accommodating for an extra million people living in Ireland.

The capital investment plan will include commitments to a Cork-Limerick motorway, an expansion to the DART, an additional runway for Dublin Airport, a school building programme
and a rural regeneration fund, among a range of other initiatives. The majority of the €115bn investment in Irish infrastructure will be funded by the Exchequer (€90bn), with the
other €25bn coming from State-owned enterprises.

According to Goodbody Stockbrokers, "While we await the full details of the plan in the coming weeks, an investment of this magnitude will move to alleviate some of the concerns around Irish competitiveness when it comes to infrastructure. However, political debate will likely rage on long before any investment is made."

Source: www.businessworld.ie