The Northern and Western Regional Assembly (NWRA) is urging the government to fast-track the delivery of 13 major infrastructure projects in the Northern and Western Region of Ireland after a new study found that the region is now on par with the least well-off areas of Europe in terms of infrastructure.
New research by the NWRA has revealed that investment in transport, health, education, housing and energy infrastructure in the Northern and Western Region is languishing far below that of its counterparts in Ireland and across the continent, with transport infrastructure ranked the seventeenth across all European regions.
The NWRA believes a policy of ‘Positive Discrimination;’ is needed to deliver regional equality across Ireland and to take pressure off an ever-expanding Greater Dublin Area.
Such a policy would involve creating a Ministry for ‘Regional Development’ which would have a significant budget for delivering key infrastructure priorities across the regions. Many countries, such as Australia, France, and Japan, have created ministerial roles specifically focused on addressing regional development inequities.
Denis Kelly, Director with the Northern and Western Regional Assembly, said the economy needs to grow in a manner that ‘benefits all regions – not just the few’.
“Adopting a regional approach for the revised National Planning Framework will be crucial to overcoming these sizable infrastructure deficits in the Northern and Western Region.
The organisation’s ‘Regional Infrastructure Tracker has revealed that since 2016, the Northern and Western Region of Ireland has received less than 10 percent of the national total investment in infrastructure projects, and just under six percent of investment from infrastructure projects worth more than €20 million, despite accounting for 17.6 percent of the population.
In contrast, the Eastern and Midlands Region of Ireland received three-quarters of the investment of the same projects.
The NWRA is one of three regional assemblies in Ireland and represents counties Cavan, Donegal, Monaghan, Leitrim, Sligo, Roscommon, Mayo, Galway.
To bridge the growing infrastructure deficit, the NWRA is demanding that the government ringfence more than half of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) for the region and prioritise 13 infrastructure projects for the region. This includes the N17 Knock to Collooney Road Scheme, and the reopening of the Western Rail Corridor from Athenry to Collooney.
The report estimates that the total capital cost of delivering these 13 priority projects would range from €4.8 billion to €6.8 billion, which would deliver transformative benefits in areas of climate action, regional development and the all-island economy, while costing considerably less than the overall cost of the Dublin Metro.
“Delivering on these 13 priority infrastructure projects will go a long way in achieving this. These absolutely essential – and urgent – projects include the Donegal Ten-T Projects, the N2 Clontibret to the Border and the A5 road scheme – and the expansion of higher and research education infrastructure assets in the region,” added Mr Kelly.
The report also calls for a Citizen’s Assembly to examine how more autonomy can be given to local authorities and regional assemblies to address their own infrastructure deficits. As this work is undertaken, the report recommends that a ‘Minister for Regional Development’ should be designated with a significant budget for delivering key infrastructure priorities.
Councillor Jarlath Munnelly, Cathaoirleach with the Northern and Western Regional Assembly, said without a regional approach, greater pressures will be placed on the Dublin Area, ‘further blunting the economic potential of regions such as the Northern and Western region of Ireland’.
John Daly, Economist with the Northern and Western Regional Assembly, said: “Given the exceptional growth of the Irish economy – and the abundance of exchequer returns in recent years – it is remarkable that the Northern and Western Region of Ireland is in the bottom 20 EU Regions in terms of transport infrastructure.”
Mr Daly commented on ‘notable underinvestment’ in the area, and called it ‘no surprise’ that regional inequalities continue to rise as population, employment and income growth remains overly concentrated around the Greater Dublin Area.
“The delivery of our 13 priority infrastructure projects represents significant value for money for the State in the long-term, with the delivery of these projects having the potential to rejuvenate our region, while simultaneously supporting our climate targets and growing the all-island economy; all at a cost considerably lower compared to, for example, the latest cost estimates for Dublin Metro,” concluded the economist.
