The reason why?

In the context of the revision of the National Development Plan we might consider the cost of connectivity. 

The government has listed a sum of €2billion, as a sort of down payment on the full cost of Metro North in Dublin. As Ryanair CEO, Michael O’Leary said last week, it’s likely to cost at least ten Children’s Hospitals. The government seems unable to deliver major infrastructural projects on time and on budget, so the cost of 18km of underground railway is anyone’s guess. Waterford wants to increase regional connectivity and access for tourism and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) at a very modest cost. Private investors and local authorities are prepared to co-fund the work. The Sir (and Lady) Humphreys in the Dept. of Transport, who disgraced themselves over the new rescue helicopter contract, have done everything except publicly piddle on the Waterford airport project to ground it. It’s a PPP alright. They are so busy minding our pennies while hundreds of millions are skied away. They could do with several serious grillings by the Public Accounts Committee. Waterford is looking for, say, €20million which is one thousandth of the Metro cost (just think of that for a moment) and it can’t be allocated. We all know that this is not the only investment deficit that Waterford has faced.

The UK NGO, Centre for Cities’ latest analysis assesses how high streets are doing across the UK. The research by Paul Swinney, Oscar Selby and Luka Kovacevic shows that “the problems facing struggling high streets are economic, not cosmetic. Most struggling high streets sit in the middle of low growth, low wage local economies”. The UK is not directly comparable to Ireland, but there is sufficient correlation to make the research results interesting. The recent SEEM report by SETU academics pinpoints low growth and low wages as particularly affecting the south east and Waterford economies. We have been so often accused of whinging in Waterford about unjust and unfair government funding, across the board that we have actually begun to believe them. The most distressing statistics from the “South East Economic Monitor – Summer 2025” highlight gross inequality in capital funding. The professionals say it.

They show that the south east has the Lowest Capital Investment per capita, receiving just €1,738 per person in major public capital investment, €7,000 below the national average and the lowest of all regions. Our GDP growth lags the national rate. Since 2019, national GDP grew 40.2%, but the South East grew only 8.2%. Two of the past five years show a contraction in our GDP. Dublin’s economy is now 12 times larger than the South East’s despite only 3 times the population (up from 9:1 ratio in 2021).

The region generates 4% of national income taxes despite having 8.9% of the population and returns about half of what would be expected on a per capita basis. Our disposable income per person is €26,662, which is 21% lower than Dublin’s level (€32,393).

The South East holds just 5.4% of IDA-supported jobs versus an expected 8.89% share, leaving a deficit of 11,360 direct FDI jobs. These are the highest-paying and are particularly underrepresented here.

Since the establishment of the Technological Universities, SETU has received only 12% of total TU capital funding. SETU is funded at about half the rate of TU Dublin, Atlantic TU, and Munster TU, and two-thirds of TU Shannon.

You may have no interest in politics or economics, but these are real world figures which directly impact Waterford and south eastern families. In essence, we are fobbed off with crumbs and then blamed for being thin. The wide scale acceptance of that status quo across this region harms us all. In Waterford’s case, the attack on the status of the city as a regional centre started after the demise of Waterford Glass. The rush to kill us off post 2011 while we were down was destructive. The cancellation of projects at WIT and the determined attempt to reduce the status of UHW to a Model 3 hospital was effectively an economic war. The attack on WIT and the destruction of its management team and leadership has had knock on implications on the delivery of third level education across the south east which are still apparent. The aspiration for a fully funded university, on par with other regional cities, which was within grasp, with WIT performing to international university standards, was crushed under the heel of departmental ill will and political envy. It was an act of economic and intellectual sabotage.

As Waterford city slowly emerges from the economic maelstrom, new housing and new businesses are being developed. Our political masters highlight investment in the North Quays as seminal evidence of revival and the development of a new surgical hub at Maypark and the commencement of work on a new SETU engineering building are positive indications of some good will. But a lot of damage has been done. We blame everybody and everything locally for the difficulties in our city centre, while ignoring the impact the actual real local economy has had on things. Is there a reason for New Street, Back Lane, Browne’s Lane, Stephen’s Street etc? Is it why private investment, which invariably follows public investment, has been so slow to come?

Things are getting better here and after a decade of massive fiscal rebound in Ireland, it could hardly be otherwise. Yet deficits still remain in acute medicine, third level education, FDI and in general government investment. Current projects do not make up for almost two decades of being sidelined (20 years waiting for a SETU Engineering Building)although they provide a defensive political umbrella for our current TDs. The willingness of B&Q, IKEA and Jack and Jones to invest in new outlets here shows that the private sector recognises the real potential of this city as the economic driver of the south east even as we face into possibly difficult international times. The fact that two beautiful, historic pubs, the Munster and T&H Doolan’s are shuttered speaks volumes for the long term impact of inequitable government funding on the local economy and how it is perceived both locally and nationally! Failure to fund our airport speaks volumes.