Ciara Conway (Waterford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Many of the previous speakers have spoken about the devastation the weather brought in the new year particularly to coastal communities.

The state in which it left the road networks in Tramore in County Waterford came to national attention. What was most alarming about the sink hole that emerged and was shown by the media was how little there is between the road surface and what is beneath it. The Department of Finance needs to consider its allocation for roads and infrastructure. We cannot linger about investing in infrastructure that is so important to tourism and for day-to-day usage. Residents in that area were very distressed to see how little concrete there is between us and what is underneath, and by the sheer force of nature that washed in the water and crumbled the road. If we let this linger and do not get ahead of it we will always be playing catch-up. It is imperative that we invest in our infrastructure to service citizens and visitors to the country.

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