Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Meath, Kildare, Fingal and Monaghan partnerships for being with us today. In fairness, it is difficult to be questioned on numerous issues, but at least they showed up. We have asked the Minister for rural affairs to come before the committee for the past five weeks. She has failed to show up and has refused to turn up to answer questions on the Leader programme. This in itself tells me that the programme is in a bit of a shambles and that she is afraid to face the rural affairs committee, her very own committee.

I listened to what Mr. Byrne had to say. It was refreshing to hear such honesty. I have heard words today such as "control", "power", "politics", "fool" and "shafted". I come from west Cork, which was solidly shafted. West Cork Development Partnership appeared before us about three weeks ago.

Since that, it has been shafted, with seven members of staff involved. It is a scandalous situation. The people in that partnership have delivered honestly to the people in west Cork for 25 years, and they have been booted out. We have invited the Minister to appear before the committee and explain herself but she failed to do that, so that tells me there is an issue.

I have a few questions, but I realise the witnesses cannot answer all of them. Over the years, west Cork and other places have seen that many of the funds appear to go to less populated and more wealthy areas than areas where there is serious rural deprivation. How is that and who comes up with it? Have the witnesses experience of that? Also, were any funds withdrawn from them in the last programme? In west Cork, €2.4 million was taken from the budget, even though it needed €5 million extra, and that funding was never spent. It is extraordinary that the powers-that-be withdrew €2.4 million and the money was never spent afterwards. West Cork desperately needed that funding at the time. Do the witnesses have funds at present for projects in their areas? When will the new programme be rolled out? Perhaps my questions should be directed to the Minister, but the witnesses might have an update on the position. In west Cork we certainly do not know what is happening or who is going to roll out the programme. It is a complete shambles. We are told that everything is on schedule, but how can that be when nobody knows what is happening.

The rural social scheme and Tús are hugely important in rural communities, as the witnesses well know. However, the JobPath scheme has come into play and has disrupted the Tús scheme in particular. Somebody might be identified for Tús but once they have been identified for JobPath, even though they do not have a job, they will not be allowed on the Tús scheme. That has caused a good deal of annoyance. I am aware of people in rural communities around Castletownbere and on the Mizen Peninsula who are on the roads thumbing lifts to places such as Bantry, 20 or 30 miles away, to try to keep in line with JobPath. They have no job and do not know why they are hitching lifts up and down. They might be offered a Tús scheme or an opportunity to go on a community employment or other scheme, but they cannot take it because JobPath appears to have overall governance. Is it causing the same problem for the witnesses?

On broadband and mobile telephone coverage, in fairness every community is in desperate need of better broadband. I was in Castletownbere yesterday where Eir was talking about rolling it out. I strongly believe there should be funding for communities to provide the roll out of broadband in their areas. If Eir or any other company has the main fibre optic cable along a main line but there are six or seven houses up a hill or elsewhere who cannot get it, they should be allowed to apply for funding under the Leader programme to bring the broadband to their community. There has been a failure in this country with broadband and mobile telephone coverage. It is an absolute failure at the highest level and there is no intention of turning it around. I raise this issue continuously because politicians got it in the neck on the doorsteps during the election campaign, and rightly so. If there was an election in the morning, I would get it in the neck even further because it has not improved. Mobile telephone coverage has collapsed in many communities. A merger was allowed between 02 and Three Ireland mobile telephone service providers. Where in the name of God did ComReg come into that? Masts are being lost in rural communities throughout the country and mobile telephone reception is being lost, but nobody is willing to take it on. Only the community can take it on. The witnesses know as well as me, as do people who speak honestly from the heart, that if we want proper broadband and a proper mobile telephone service it must be given back to the community, because the community will deliver it through the Leader programmes.