Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Councillor Canning and this colleagues and thank them for their presentation. Who is responsible for the North West Gateway Initiative consultation? Is it a Government Department, North and South, or the North-South Ministerial Council? If it is a Government Department, maybe it would be worthwhile for us to ask the relevant officials to come before the committee and we could question them on their commitment, how soon the consultation process will end and what its clear objective is. The message I got from the presentation was that the smaller projects funded through PEACE and INTERREG have been successful. In my constituency, Cavan-Monaghan, many worthwhile projects have been funded through those initiatives since the mid-1990s, driven by local statutory organisations and community groups.

The A5 is obviously the major deficit regarding access for the north west. If I were in that region I would highlight it because we all know the value of a good road network. When one is driving to Letterkenny, going through Counties Tyrone and Donegal is a very slow progress. When we met the delegates’ colleagues in Derry, we spoke about the major strengths in education in the north west due to further education colleges including Institute of Technology Sligo, ITS, Letterkenny Institute of Technology, LYIT, and Magee College. When I asked whether the educational resources on both sides of the Border would be maximised in respect of job creation, I was very glad to hear Councillor Hastings mention the major role LYIT had played in the development of the science park. It is one area the north west should highlight as a major positive point regarding the potential to create jobs and develop the economy. That does not take away from the challenges there are in other areas, such as road access, which is critical.