
Govt set to sign off on €100 billion revised National Development Plan
The blueprint for infrastructure spending will be announced tomorrow along with the Summer Economic Statement.
Housing, transport, energy and water services will be funded from the new National Development Plan.
Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers has said it will amount to €100 billion from 2026 to 2030, along with the promise of another €100 billion for the following five years.
The aim is to address shortfalls in services and utilities while also shoring up Ireland's competitiveness.
Tánaiste Simon Harris has said the new plan will signal a stepchange in infrastructure investment.
Headline figures will be announced tomorrow with the allocations for departments and utilities set out.
But the full list of projects will not be confirmed for several months.
Mr Harris said: "I think it's important that people are aware that the backdrop against which the Summer Economic Statement will be published this year will be very very different from previous years.
"We are endeavouring to put together a set of economic projections at a time of huge global uncertainty.
"So, it is going to be necessary to be prudent in the figures we publish and to make decisions in the weeks and months ahead that have a real focus on protecting jobs and investment and keeping our country safe during what could be an economically turbulent period ahead."
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

The Journal
18 minutes ago
- The Journal
Government urged ‘not to delay solemn promise' of VAT cut for hospitality sector
THE GOVERNMENT HAS been urged 'not to delay its promise' of cutting the VAT rate for the hospitality sector to 9% in the upcoming budget. Despite election promises and ministerial pronouncements, government this week has been signalling that a cut to the VAT rate for the hospitality sector may not go ahead in Budget 2026. Tánaiste Simon Harris said the government had made a 'solemn' commitment in the election to reduce the VAT rate for the hospitality sector, but this week the government has been sending mixed signals on how it will proceed. Speaking to RTÉ Radio 1 yesterday, junior justice minister Niall Collins said the VAT cut was not a 'done deal'. VAT for the tourism and hospitality sectors was reduced to 9% during the Covid-19 pandemic at a cost of €1.2bn to the exchequer. The previous 13.5% rate was reinstated last August, despite the sector's opposition. Retail Excellence Ireland (REI), the largest representative body for the retail industry in Ireland, has called on the Government to follow through on its 'promise to permanently cut the rate of VAT for the hospitality industry to 9% in Budget 2026'. Jean McCabe, CEO of REI, said that 'after a tough few years, the Government's solemn promise to cut the VAT rate for the hospitality industry was welcome'. 'It would be regrettable for it to delay its promise now,' she added. 'There are too many livelihoods at stake not to introduce a measure as soon as possible that would have such a significant impact on the industry, and on related industries such as retail.' She said the government must do 'everything in its power to strengthen our domestic economy at a time when we need it most'. McCabe also called for the general rate of VAT be cut from 23% to 21% to assist the retail industry. Advertisement Meanwhile, the Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) has criticised the 'deeply misleading' figure of €1 billion per year that was quoted earlier this week regarding the cost to the Exchequer of reducing VAT for hospitality businesses. On Tuesday, during a press conference on the Summer Economic Statement, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe told reporters that the one-year cost for reducing the hospitality VAT rate to 9% for restaurants and hotels would be between €950mn and €1bn. However, later in the press conference, Donohoe said he would need to clarify if that figure did include hotels. A spokesperson for the minister told The Journal today that, based on CSO data, the total one-year cost for restaurants and hotels is actually €810mn. This is split €675mn for restaurants and cafes and €135mn for hotels. The cost for hairdressers would be an additional €40mn. IHF Chief Executive Paul Gallagher said it's time for an 'honest and balanced debate' that 'recognises the economic and social importance of hospitality food service businesses and gives them a fighting chance to survive'. He noted that the 'true cost involved is significantly lower than the widely quoted €1bn figure cited by the Government in recent days' Gallagher added: 'The Government's narrative has had the effect, intended or otherwise, of driving a wedge between the public and the hospitality industry, framing the VAT reduction as a giveaway to businesses. 'This is extremely divisive and simply not true.' He said the 9% VAT reduction sought would apply to prepared food services, such as meals in restaurants, takeaways, commercial kitchens and food served on transport. 'The real beneficiaries are small food businesses,' said Gallagher, 'many of which are operating on the brink of survival due to extreme food cost inflation and shrinking margins. 'Reducing VAT on food services is not a handout to hospitality businesses – it is a vital intervention for a sector that supports over 270,000 livelihoods and contributes significantly to the economy.' Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal


RTÉ News
3 hours ago
- RTÉ News
EU chief to meet Trump in Scotland for trade talks
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she will meet with US President Donald Trump in Scotland this weekend to address the EU-US tariffs standoff, with a week to go until the 1 August negotiating deadline. "Following a good call with @POTUS, we have agreed to meet in Scotland on Sunday to discuss transatlantic trade relations, and how we can keep them strong," Ms von der Leyen wrote on X. Earlier, Mr Trump said there was a "50-50 chance" that the United States would reach a trade agreement with the European Union. He was speaking before he left the White House to head to Scotland for several days of golfing and bilateral meetings. Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said he hopes a framework trade agreement between the European Union and the United States can be "signed off before the weekend is over". Speaking in Luxembourg, Mr Martin said he would "welcome an end to the uncertainty" around the trade dispute between the bloc and the US. "The agreement will be a headline framework agreement," he said, adding that there will be detailed discussions afterwards in respect of many products. "I know there are intensive discussions ongoing and the reason for the intensity of those negotiations is to try to tie up as much as we can, and get certainty around the sectoral tariffs," said Mr Martin. "The European Union is not anxious for a retaliatory scenario, is not anxious to engage in a trade conflict with the United States." A 'critical moment' Tánaiste Simon Harris has said the EU and US have reached a "critical moment" in terms of their trade and tariffs talks. While saying he remains "cautiously optimistic that a deal can be reached", the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade said we are now at a "critical" stage and that it is "long past time to strike a deal". In a statement, the Tanaiste said: "Over recent weeks, the EU has been engaged in intensive negotiations with the US to try and bring about an outcome that avoids unnecessary trade barriers. "We have been calm and measured in our response and as we approach the deadline for the talks I will continue to engage with the European Commission and other member states. "EU unity at this moment is critical as is reaching a deal that allows for the mutually beneficial trading relationship with the US to continue. €300m for water infrastructre projects The European Investment Bank is to provide a new €300m loan for water infrastructure projects in Ireland. The announcement was made this morning after a meeting between the Taoiseach and President of the EIB Nadia Calviño in Luxembourg. Mr Martin, attending a signing ceremony for the new loan at the EIB, said the bank was a "key partner for transformational investment across Ireland". He said the new investment will help Uisce Éireann to upgrade vital water infrastructure and that the loan aligned with the Government's new National Development Plan, announced earlier this week. The loan, signed in cooperation with the National Treasury Management Agency, is designed to enhance water security by extending water supply infrastructure and upgrading wastewater treatment plants. It also includes investments in stormwater drainage facilities to future-proof against more extreme periods of rainfall. Chris McCarthy, the chief financial officer of Uisce Éireann, said the investment will accelerate the development of Ireland's critical water services infrastructure. In recent years, the EIB has provided approximately €1 billion annually for public and private investment in water, housing and energy projects in Ireland.


Irish Independent
3 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Protestors to hit Bray Air Display over links to war in Gaza
Together with the Peace and Neutrality Alliance (PANA), the lobby group which campaigns to preserve Irish neutrality, a boycott of the Bray Air Display is being called for, 'until weapons manufacturers and companies complicit in genocide are dropped as sponsors'. In a statement, on Friday, July 25, NWAG said: 'The Bray Air Display is one of the busiest days of the year for Bray, and is often one of the biggest events for locals and visitors to gather for a show. However, we must draw attention to the main event sponsors. 'Swords-based ASL Airlines has transported munitions to Israel via Ireland, and despite claims that it has stopped, has been found to use a sister firm in Belgium to continue doing so.' NWAG has based these claims on a report, in January 17 this year, carried by the political news site, The Ditch. ASL responded to that report on January 23, when it issued a statement, and said: 'ASL can confirm that its airlines, including ASL Ireland, ASL Belgium and ASL France, did not carry munitions or ITAR [freight, International Traffic in Arms Regulations] on any flight to Israel since our commitment not to last November. We continue to monitor all flights to Israel and are confident that no such items are being transported on our flights to Israel. "In response to staff concerns we reviewed our network flights last week. We established that some shipments that caused concern actually related to intra-European flights between Paris, France and Cologne, Germany, that are part of our European network. We can confidently say that there were no declarations made under the relevant regulations with regard to these shipments and as such, no munitions were carried on these flights. 'We did carry dangerous goods on flights on this route last week. Dangerous goods include many categories of shipment that are labelled hazardous items for flight including flammable, corrosive or toxic items. Such items are carefully packed and segregated for safety reasons,' it concluded. NWAG has also criticised another event sponsor, Saab, which it says is 'a Swedish weapons manufacturer with contracts with NATO and which sends military equipment to regimes accused of human rights abuses, including Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Bahrain and Egypt'. The company describes itself as an organisation that 'serves the global market of governments, authorities and corporations with products, services and solutions ranging from military defence to civil security' and has offices in Thailand and the UAE, among other locations. Last year, North Wicklow Against Genocide protested the presence of Lockheed Martin as a sponsor at the Bray Air Display. This year, the group contacted Simon Harris, Wicklow County Council and Bray Air Display organisers, via email, in April 2025, to demand Lockheed Martin and other weapons manufacturers be dropped as sponsors of the event. 'Lockheed Martin is a US company making heavy weaponry and missiles, military aircraft, and other military technologies, which are being used in imperialist conflicts across the world, including the ongoing genocide carried out by Israel in Palestine. It's the world's largest weapons dealer and directly arms the Israeli Occupation Forces,' they said. "When Bray Air Display was called out about this sponsorship, they briefly replaced the Lockheed Martin logo on their website with Sikorsky's, which is a Lockheed Martin subsidiary. Sikosky's logo has now dropped from the Air Display website too.' However, Bray Air Display has since dropped Lockheed Martin as a sponsor and no longer displays either logo on their website. Commenting on the event, PANA chair, Stephen Kelly, said: 'The brutal reality of war should not be forgotten. The glamorised image of war that some seek to portray is deceptive. We have no problem with people having a fun day out, but this event is sponsored by companies who help countries involved in war crimes. We should be peacebuilders, not warmakers." Also questioning the propriety of the air show, NWAG member Kellie McConnell said: 'Is this really the kind of event we want in Bray? "Simon Harris has said it is clear that Israel has been committing war crimes in Gaza, Micheál Martin has finally admitted that it is genocide, and yet we are expected to sit by while these companies use our land and airspace to supply weapons for genocide, and sponsor events in our communities with the money they have made from war and mass murder.' Members of NWAG have been campaigning in advance of the spectacle, distributing information leaflets at Bray Dart Station this week. The organisers of Bray Air Display have been contacted for comment.