Taoiseach Brian Cowen has announce a revision of the six-year €39.43 billion revised capital investment programme, including a cut on healthcare infrastructure

Navan commuter rail link has been dropped but cross city DART line and Metro North project will go ahead, along with housing regeneration projects in Limerick and Ballymun

The relocation of the Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) to a new campus at Grangegorman will go ahead. Plans to decentralise elements of the Department of Education to Mullingar and of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation to Carlow will be postponed for further re-assessment next year, as well as a similar move of government personnel to Longford. Taoiseach Brian Cowen said the revised plan was about getting the 'best bang for our buck'. Housing regeneration projects in Limerick and Ballymun will also continue and ghost estates are to be leased out for social housing.

Metro North and the €2.5 billion Dart underground project are to proceed, but rail links from Dublin to Navan and from Tuam to Claremorris will be put on hold. Government has stated that potential for job creation was the deciding factor in choosing between different projects. Establishing the DIT campus at Grangegorman would be “a huge milestone” in terms of educational infrastructure for Dublin, government sources said. The Bolton Street architecture and engineering faculty will be the first to move. Housing regeneration projects in Limerick and Ballymun will also continue and ghost estates are to be leased out for social housing.

Although €1 billion is being cut from capital expenditure, government said recent reductions in costs would mean “added value” of about 30%. Around 30% has been cut from the Health Service Executive’s budget for developing hospital and other facilities. Despite this, the new national paediatric hospital has been approved for development on a site at the Mater Hospital in Dublin.

Some of the main areas for investment will be public transport, roads, schools, health facilities, the environment, energy efficiency, broadband, Research and Development (RD) and support for jobs and enterprise. Speaking before the launch, the Taoiseach said: “This is exactly the type of stimulus that the economy needs to help rebuild confidence and accelerate economic recovery. It will not only greatly improve the lives of our citizens, it will help to create jobs now and to sustain jobs for the future. We have seen the benefits of the investment of recent years and we believe it is essential to maintain that momentum for the coming years.

“We also recognise that we are in a new situation, so have refocused our priorities. That is why, for example, there will be a doubling of investment through the enterprise agencies to help build the smart economy and to create sustainable jobs. There will also be a greater share of investment for public transport and environmental issues such as upgrading our water services.”