Pádraig Ó Céidigh (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Yes. I will take just two minutes because I am aware that we are over time. I thank everyone involved, especially our guests. Their contributions reflected their passion, intellect and knowledge. All of us have learned a lot from what the witnesses have said and shared. It will certainly form part of the report that I will propose to our committee to reflect on and review. We hope to have that as soon as possible. I would say it will be completed in late January or early February. A colleague of mine is going ahead with her work soon and I am pretty keen to work with and support Senator Kelleher in her project also.

Companies do not grow, people grow. That is what it is all about. If we invest in people, we will have a fantastic country. The Tricolour means as much to me as it does to all of us here. The bottom line is that this is what we are all about. We are not here for a long time, but we can pass it on so that our next generation can help to continue creating better communities.

I appreciate the point made by Ms O'Toole and Mr. Walsh to the effect that it is important to acknowledge the work the Government is doing to provide help and support. Reference was made to Údarás na Gaeltachta and others. There is a lot of support available but there is more to do. In Mayo, for example, we carried out significant research on Gaeltacht regions. The rate of unemployment in the Mayo Gaeltacht is more than three times greater than that which obtains elsewhere in the State. We still have work to do. This does not mean that we can sit back and think we are all great, but there are a lot of good things happening. I thank the Chairman my colleagues for supporting this part of the workshop programme.