Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Projects came in and got scattered but the clear focus of the management the other day was very much on the large towns. I listened carefully and they spoke about two places in Connemara - An Cheathrú Rua and An Clochán - and that was it. It was argued that we could not spread the jam too thin. That worries me because that is a very common syndrome. Even when I look at the stuff that is written here, I can see this hierarchy of cities, towns, villages and surrounding areas. Most people - 1 million people, including me - live in surrounding areas. They are not in a place and are treated as appendages to somewhere else. That is very dangerous when we are talking about rural regeneration as we understand the term "rural" in Ireland. I made the point the other day that with their vision of it, St. Thomas' GAA club might as well pack up its hurley sticks and so might Ballyhale Shamrocks GAA because they will not be there for the next generation to play hurling. These places no longer count even though they are highly successful communities. They are not in the areas where the authorities want to see growth.