Infrastructure investment ‘must not be delayed’

PUTTING off infrastructure investment is an easy option for governments faced with challenges like Brexit, but spending in the area is needed for long-term growth.

The warning came from Brad Watson, an infrastructure expert with consultancy firm EY, during a visit to Dublin.

The Government last month delivered a stark assessment of the impact of a no-deal Brexit with concern that up to 50,000 jobs would be lost and an estimate the economy would be 4.25pc smaller in 2023 than currently projected.

Mr Watson, who has examined the Government’s 10-year €116bn National Development Plan (NDP) which includes plans for major projects such as MetroLink, cautioned against delaying infrastructure investment.

He said it was a key enabler for economic growth but also “an easy thing to put off just one more year”. Mr Watson added: “Governments around the world make those sorts of trade-offs in light of fiscal pressures and economic swings one way or another.

“Brexit is just another example where that may or may not create that sort of decision-making as the country deals with the implications of Brexit.”

He said: “What’s great about the National Development Plan is the clarity on the importance of the infrastructure investment, almost regardless of what happens in the economy and this spend is required to enable the long-term growth.”

A Canadian national, Mr Watson is EY’s global lead for infrastructure in government and the real estate sector based in Dubai.

He was in Dublin to deliver an address to a conference on the NDP.