The new government’s vision for infrastructure development

The remit of the new Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, Jack Chambers TD, is set to expand to include infrastructure.

Leading a department that is to be rebranded to reflect its delivery priorities over the next five years, Chambers will, at some stage in the short term, formally be called the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services, Reform, and Digitalisation

This change is reflected in the policy proposals in the 2025 Programme for Government (PfG), which outlines goals for infrastructure and construction, aiming to address the State’s evolving infrastructure needs.

Infrastructure priorities by sector

The PfG outlined priorities for national development, focusing on economic stability, housing, public services, and infrastructure. Key commitments include:

• Housing: A pledge to construct 300,000 new homes by 2030.

• Transport: Investments in major transport projects, such as the M28 motorway to enhance connectivity between Cork City and Ringaskiddy, and the DART+ program, which aims to expand Dublin’s rail network to areas like Drogheda, Maynooth, and Hazelhatch.

• Energy: Development of integrated data centres and district heating systems, alongside the construction of the Celtic Interconnector, a project designed to link Ireland’s electricity grid with France, enhancing energy security and sustainability. Trial operations are set to commence on the interconnector in 2026.

• Health: Commitment to four new hospital projects, as well as the delivery of the National Children’s Hospital, which faces reported delays into 2026, having originally meant to be completed in 2022.

• Public services: Expansion of publicly available electric vehicle charging points, promoting the adoption of sustainable transportation.

Department to be re-named

Over the course of the next five years, the Department’s remits are to expand to include infrastructure and digitalisation. This comes after initial proposals to establish a separate Department of Infrastructure, as advocated by Tánaiste (Taoiseach at the time) Simon Harris TD.

The Fine Gael election manifesto outlined the necessity of a dedicated department to manage the construction of 250,000 homes over five years and to address related challenges such as migration, child poverty, and climate change.

Ultimately, with the proposal proving unpopular with the Government’s right-leaning independent coalition partners, the Government opted for an integrated approach, consolidating responsibilities within a single department to ensure streamlined decision-making and efficient resource allocation.

The previous government’s infrastructure record

Reflecting on the previous government’s tenure, several infrastructure and construction targets set out in the 2025 PfG were pursued with varying degrees of success:

• Housing: By the end of 2024, then Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Darragh O’Brien TD hailed the construction of nearly 40,000 homes, surpassing initial targets. However, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) later reported that only 30,330 homes were completed in 2024, representing a 6.7 per cent decrease from 2023.

• Transport: Significant investments were made in road infrastructure, with €713 million allocated in 2025 for improvements, including the construction of new bypasses in Killaloe, Ballina, and Limerick City, marking the highest investment in roads for over five years.

• Cross-border: Over €800 million was committed to Shared Island projects, including €600 million for the A5 North-West transport corridor.

• Water: The Government committed over €1.7 billion annually to Uisce Éireann, approved the Eastern and Midlands Water Supply Project, launched a €125 million Rural Water Programme, and advanced the Ulster Canal restoration, ensuring sustainable water supply and regional development.

While these efforts indicate progress, challenges remain in fully realising the ambitious infrastructure and construction goals outlined in the PfG.

The integration of infrastructure oversight into a single department under Minister Chambers’ leadership is poised to address these challenges through coordinated policy implementation and strategic investment.