Carol Nolan (Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witness for that very in-depth presentation. I welcome the fact that one of the key deliverables of this plan is the creation of 135,000 jobs by 2020. However, I have concerns, in particular with the Industrial Development Authority, IDA. Rural counties like my county of Offaly have been totally neglected. The IDA does not seem to be interested. I wonder if a task force could be set up to make IDA more answerable in midland counties. I know that counties like Laois are not getting a look-in. What seems to be going on is unacceptable. There are very few visits. I have met an IDA representative on two occasions. On one of those occasions I brought him to the town of Edenderry in north Offaly, a town which has a very high number of vacant commercial buildings and is crying out for investment. It is a town with great potential. Nothing has been done, and as a Deputy, it is very frustrating. I would like to see 135,000 jobs created in rural Ireland, because we need them. Can something be done there? The only way forward is to set up a task force, because the IDA does not seem to be interested, and now is the time to make it accountable and answerable. Deputies should not have to run around after it. More needs to happen in that respect.

The setting up of the local enterprise offices, LEOs, throughout the local authorities was certainly a positive approach. They are working very hard and very well, providing mentoring for small and medium enterprises, as well as supports, such as micro-finance. However, they are on their own. We need foreign direct investment as well. Of course, we need a balance between the two. We need the local enterprise offices to do the work they do, and I believe they are working very well. However, we also need the IDA to take more responsibility and to be more accountable.

On the issue of broadband, I agree with what has been said by other members. There are serious gaps in high-speed broadband. The fact that we now have broadband officers is welcome, but the issue needs to be moved on more quickly, because it is holding us back. At a recent meeting in Athlone, IBEC pointed out that it was a huge disadvantage. We do not want the IDA having any more excuses than it already has, so I would like to see high-speed broadband put in as soon as possible. I would like to see high-speed action on this issue.

Rural transport is a huge issue which I have raised in the Dáil. The programme for Government stated that the report on rural transport would be done within six months. This is unacceptable. If this was a report on an urban area, it would have been published long ago. We can all see that we are disadvantaged and that we have to shout and demand things. We should not have to. Could this committee write to the Minister concerned to ask for the publication of that report as soon as possible? It mentions that it will look at the possibility of opening up new routes. That needs to happen because we are behind.

The plan is fantastic and I welcome it, but we need more accountability and more pressure on all concerned to realise the key deliverables of this plan. I look forward to seeing many of these aims delivered, and I remain hopeful and positive that they will be.