26. (1) The following are functions of the Agency—

(a) to provide advice to any State authority of what, in the opinion of the Agency, are the optimal means of financing the cost of public investment projects in order to achieve value for money,

(b) to provide advice to any State authority on all aspects of financing, refinancing and insurance of public investment projects to be duly undertaken by means of public private partnership arrangements or within the public sector,

(c) to enter into a public private partnership arrangement with a view to transferring the rights and obligations under such an arrangement to any State authority,

(d) to act as agent for any State authority in connection with the entry or proposed entry by that State authority into a public private partnership arrangement, or

F1[(e) to enter into any arrangement or contract to procure as agent for the Minister for Education, the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science or for a local authority (within the meaning of the Local Government Act 2001 ) any public investment project in relation to building or other infrastructure, including the financing, management, design and construction of such building or other infrastructure, as the Minister of the Government concerned or the local authority, as the case may be, may from time to time designate.]

(2) In performing its functions under this Part the Agency shall comply with all guidelines and instructions that the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform may, from time to time, with the consent of the Minister, issue to the Agency.

(3) When performing functions under or for the purposes of this Part the Agency may describe itself as the National Development Finance Agency.