Slowing pace of capital project delivery has knock-on effects for Irish society

Irish Times

6 days ago

Purgatorial delays and escalating costs in delivering capital projects in Ireland is not a new phenomenon.
A trawl back to the turn of the century will uncover many examples. They include the
National Children's Hospital
, the
Luas tram system
, the Galway Ring Road, the Metro project, offshore wind, and the proposal to extract water from the
River Shannon
for use in
Dublin
(first tabled by Dublin City Council in 2011).
More than a decade ago prominent management consultant Eddie Molloy created a phrase to describe it: implementation deficit disorder.
The latest in a long line of
Government
reports to grapple with the issue was launched on Tuesday by Minister for Public Expenditure
Jack Chambers
. This one is short (less than 50 pages) and is essentially a scoping exercise with a brief to pinpoint the reasons for such long delays in completing infrastructure. Thinking up solutions will come later, with a report and action plan due in the autumn.
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The report has identified 12 distinct barriers to timely completion and has not pulled its punches in presenting its findings.
In short, the time it takes for big projects to be completed has 'lengthened considerably'. This has meant knock-on effects for society.
For example, a wastewater system that is delayed in an area means housing estates cannot be built. The delays of often five years or more can result in the final costs ballooning to a multiple of the initial estimate (look no further than the National Children's Hospital).
The 12 barriers are all related. Many of them link in one way or another to the most highlighted impediment of all: judicial review challenges.
One key finding is the public is not sufficiently aware of the consequences of poor infrastructure for communities. That lack of knowledge of the real benefits of a project tends to 'magnify opposition'.
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Increase in High Court challenges a key barrier to timely completion of infrastructure, report finds
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There are ongoing developments and expansion plans for the Luas tram system. Photograph: Getty Images
That opposition often becomes a High Court challenge.
The report cites the Greater Dublin Drainage Project, which has been held back since 2020 by a successful challenge on a single ground.
The project will not now be completed until 2032. In the meantime, costs have doubled and could have an impact on further development of housing in north Dublin.
The key evidential finding is that the number of judicial review cases is increasing. In 2014, there were 42 cases. In 2024, that figure was 147. Already in the first six months of 2025, there have been 88 such court applications, a 20 per cent increase on last year.
A judicial review case can result in a project taking between three and five years longer to complete.
Red tape is another significant factor. Chambers cited an Irish Water project that has required 30,000 pages of information.
When transposing EU directives, Ireland has often followed the highest possible standard. Elsewhere in Europe, an environmental impact assessment is required for a wastewater treatment plan if it serves a population of 150,000 or more. In Ireland, the threshold is much lower: only 10,000 people. Consequently, it takes more than six years to complete consent for each project in Ireland, many years more than in other EU States.
The report has also identified a culture of risk aversion in the public service, partly caused by the increase in High Court cases. It has found that regulatory bodies and Government departments have spent more time scrutinising applications.
'The number of decisions that face judicial review and the associated reputational risk inevitably drives a more conservative approach to decision-making than might otherwise be the case,' it says.
What is the impact? It takes a decade to complete a small water treatment plant. It takes seven years to develop a modest electricity substation. Major road projects can take 15 years. Capital projects have seen a doubling of timelines compared to 20 years ago.