Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This has been a very important meeting and we will produce a report on it. Another meeting on this topic is scheduled next week that will be attended by an assistant secretary at the Department of Rural and Community Development. It involves the various pilot towns, which will all be represented. This is a core issue for us, which is why we got the co-operation of all the members. There were proposals that the various different towns and villages would be represented here. It is so important that we get to hear from those at the coalface - communities and volunteers. This is exactly what we have heard today. We have heard from people who are committed to and have pride in their communities. If they sit back, their communities are lost.

I was very taken with the contribution of Free Market. We need a strategy that can be rolled out across the State so that every community will be lifted in a co-ordinated fashion. That is why this committee needs to build on this work. It is a key issue. I would be familiar with Tipperary town, which would have got a lot of negative publicity in the past about dereliction and abandoned shop units. We are trying to eke out solutions and solutions are being put forward that need to be embraced.

There is a significant amount of money across the board. Over the past two years, County Clare has received €9.5 million from the rural regeneration and development fund, €900,000 of which has gone to the community of Tulla. I congratulate it on that. It is about co-ordination. I compliment the contingent from Clarecastle. They are truly inspirational people who work in the community and put in hours of voluntary effort for its benefit. I was a founder member of Clarecastle Community Development Group. It makes me immensely proud to see the progress that has been made. Its success is replicated in Castleblayney and Cappoquin. I see the money they have drawn down, the strategic plans they have put in place, and the challenges that exist. They are almost the same.

We need to learn from each other, which is exactly what Ms Delaney said.

There needs to be co-ordination. Based on the Scottish experience, we need a recommendation across Departments. Perhaps this has been touched on already. We must get away from the silo mentality and broaden our thinking because we need a cross-departmental effort to address the decline in our main streets. I want to know how to get that ball rolling and get that conversation started because it is a key issue for communities.

The burnout of volunteers is also a major issue. It comes back to the same people time and again. We need to get that buy-in. There is a volunteer centre in County Clare. Maybe we need to fund such centres even more to get more volunteers and benefit the community. It would be money well spent. Mr. Foley is part of that movement in Clare, so I ask him to address that matter. Many of the issues have been gone over already so I will not labour any longer. I again thank the witnesses. Senator Dolan, Deputy Stanley, Deputy Smyth, and I have all asked questions. Deputy Fitzmaurice has just joined us. I do not know whether he is following this on the monitor.