A new investment fund should be spent on long-term projects, rather than trying to buy the next election.
That's according to former Transport Minister Shane Ross, who was speaking as the Government intends to set up a State investment fund with bumper corporation tax receipts.
It will take the large, once-off corporation tax take and invest it for use in the future.
There are calls for the money to be used to address key infrastructure concerns.
Mr Ross told The Hard Shoulder this has to be something everyone will benefit from.
"Let's not get carried away with this and everybody just do a lucky dip and throw in what their favourite project is," he said.
"When I was Minister for Sport what we did do - and it's on a micro-scale compared to this - we did introduce a new sports fund, called the Large Scale Capital Infrastructure Fund.
"That was meant for very large projects, which would last for a very, very long time - in other words hundreds of years.
"There's a gap in Ireland with infrastructure in transport, sport, and everywhere else which is never really filled because politicians - and I was one of them - are very keen to spend the money very quickly before an election, but not keen to spend it long-term".
Mr Ross said the funds should not be used by the Government to 'buy the next election'.
"Let's spend it on things which are long-term, on infrastructure in transport, which people are going to see the benefit of - their children, their grandchildren, their children's children - not going to be used to buy the next election by paying more social welfare and things like that," he added.
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