Infrastructure investment critical says Quinn

Labour Party leader Mr Ruairí Quinn today said that investment in infrastructure is critical to Ireland’s future development.

In an appeal to wavering voters, Mr Quinn said that "Labour has entered this election with the most radical and substantial investment package.

"Fianna Fáil is either committed to the National Health Strategy or the National Development Plan. It is not committed to both," he said.

Mr Quinn also said that Ireland was placed third last among EU states in the transport competitiveness report recently.

"In December 2001, faced with a slowdown in economic growth, Fianna Fáil immediately put the brakes on the roads plan. The figures are well known - 35 kilometers of national road put in place since 1997 instead of the 300 planned. Their economic forecasting shows a substantial slowdown in capital investment by 2007," he said.

The Labour leader said that the Flood Tribunal had shown that too much about planning in Ireland was ad hoc.

He said that there is more than just political corruption. Mr Quinn said that Ireland has: Sprawling housing estates without schools and leisure facilities; Shopping malls designed to serve commuters not local communities; Poor public transport; Inappropriate housing densities; and Inadequate childcare provision.

"Linking all these things is critical to improving our quality of life. Co-ordinated planning is not a luxury, it is a necessity," he said.

"Three years ago the Government committed to publishing a National Spatial Plan - a template for future development around which planning can take place. The plan has not been published...

"Labour published our draft spatial plan in January 2001. In Government we will publish a revised draft within three months and seek to finalise it within a year," said Mr Quinn.