€2bn in private investment urged

BUSINESS REACTION: BUSINESS GROUP Ibec yesterday urged the Government to raise €2 billion a year from private sources in order…

BUSINESS REACTION:BUSINESS GROUP Ibec yesterday urged the Government to raise €2 billion a year from private sources in order to "maintain its ambition for the economy" at a time when capital budgets must be slashed.

Ibec director general Danny McCoy said the Government needed to plan for future growth by securing the money to finance infrastructure projects.

Chambers Ireland said it was “no surprise” that the cuts in spending were necessary, but that it was “disappointing” that capital projects “appear to be bearing the brunt of these cuts” despite their potential to act as an economic stimulus.

Both Ibec and Chambers Ireland welcomed the decision to give the go-ahead to a plan to link the two Luas lines, while Chambers Ireland also welcomed the investment of €1.6 billion in the water system over the next five years, which Chambers Ireland deputy chief executive Sean Murphy described as “critically important”. The Dublin Chamber said the business case remained for the deferred Metro North and Dart Underground projects.

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Meanwhile, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has said shelved infrastructure projects could go ahead if they could attract investment from the €75 billion held in Irish private pension funds.

Speaking at a seminar on pension provision yesterday, Fergus Whelan of Ictu said that while the cut in capital spending was bad news for jobs and growth, pension funds could be persuaded to invest instead.

The Irish Farmers Association described as “totally inadequate” the allocation to the agriculture, forestry and marine sector.

IFA president John Bryan said the funding of €168 million a year would be insufficient to achieve the growth targets set out in the Food Harvest 2020 report.

Laura Slattery

Laura Slattery

Laura Slattery is an Irish Times journalist writing about media, advertising and other business topics