Video: Varadkar pulls funding for A5 for second time but says it's a deferral not a cut

The Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, has said Dublin’s €27million contribution to the A5 road project has been deferred rather than cut this week. His Minister for Transport, Shane Ross, meanwhile, has also moved to reassure that the Irish government is fully committed to the scheme.
The deferral of Dublins 27million funding allocation for the A5 sparked recriminations this week.The deferral of Dublins 27million funding allocation for the A5 sparked recriminations this week.
The deferral of Dublins 27million funding allocation for the A5 sparked recriminations this week.

Messrs. Varadkar and Ross issued the fresh commitments after it was confirmed the €27million earmarked for allocation this year would instead be spent plugging holes in the budget for the controversial new National Children’s Hospital in Dublin, which is facing eye-watering overruns. The decision met with sharp criticism in the North West.

Foyle MP Elisha McCallion said: “News that the Fine Gael government, propped by Fianna Fáil, has deferred funding for the A5 road upgrade project is a disappointment. This is a vital infrastructural project and a key economic driver for the regeneration of the wider North West.”

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SDLP MLA Daniel McCrossan said: “This news shows the very real out workings of having no Executive and no Minister in place. Rather than delivering for people in this area, Sinn Féin and the DUP have abandoned them.”

The deferral of Dublins 27million funding allocation for the A5 sparked recriminations this week.The deferral of Dublins 27million funding allocation for the A5 sparked recriminations this week.
The deferral of Dublins 27million funding allocation for the A5 sparked recriminations this week.

Speaking in the Dáil, the Taoiseach said: “The largest single deferral, which is, of course, not a deferral in reality, is the €27 million we had allocated to A5 this year. That project cannot go ahead because, unfortunately, there is no Executive and there are no Ministers in NI.”

He added: “Should Sinn Féin and others take up their responsibilities in government, form an Executive and approve the project, we will find the money to proceed with it this year.”

Mr. Ross said: “It is the result of a decision in NI about the A5. Said decision will mean that the project payment will not have to be made until 2020.”

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He continued: “The money is there for the A5. It is a North-South deal...and that project will go ahead as planned. It is simply a timing difference as a result of a decision which was made outside the jurisdiction.”

Earlier this week the ‘Journal’ reported how the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) believed work on the road could start later this year.

Mrs. McCallion said: “I, along with my Sinn Fein colleagues will continue to lobby the Irish government to ensure the A5 upgrade is delivered.”

Mr. McCrossan pointed out how Dublin had originally promised £400m for scheme but this was slashed by Mr. Varadkar when he was transport minister in 2011.

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“This money was originally cut from £400m to £75 m for the scheme. Now it is being withheld,” he said.

The deferral of Dublin’s €27million funding allocation for the A5 sparked recriminations this week.