Investing €1bn in construction would create at least 10,000 jobs and would lead to at least half the expenditure being returned to the State, according to the Construction Industry Federation (CIF).

The Federation also said the measure would address the cuts to capital spending which have taken place since the downturn.

The gross capital spending over recent years, according to CIF, is:

2008 €9 billion

2009 €7.3 billion

2010 €6.4 billion

2011 €4.5 billion

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2012 €3.9 billion

2013 €3.4 billion

"It would be a very progressive measure if the Government were to follow the course of action that has been suggested in media reports and bring forward a €1 billion investment in construction," said CIF Director General Tom Parlon.

"Over the last few years our economy has been constrained by a total commitment to austerity. While it was important to control spending and make our economy competitive again, we also need to be looking at ways of encouraging growth.

"Capital spending has been one of the areas that has really borne the brunt of austerity. It has fallen by over €5.5 billion in the space of six years, dropping year on year. Those cuts have had an extreme impact on the construction sector. For a sector that was already going through a significant decline the cuts to capital spending have significantly exacerbated the problems in our industry and lead to greater unemployment."

(IT)