Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

To be fair, I must say at the start that massive investment has gone into Cork. It is great to see such ambition, especially on the eastern line and the Mallow line as well. We are very appreciative of all the progress made.

Starting with the electrification of the track in Cork, it is great to see this happening. It has started. When are we likely to see electric locomotives and trains on the lines? Work on installing double-tracking has begun again in Kent Station. When is that likely to conclude? Turning to accessibility, Irish Rail is working on a lift at Little Island train station. This is great because it has always been difficult for people there with disabilities, prams or whatever. There is an issue, though, with the lift in Glounthaune station. I think it might be related to a planning issue concerned with the station being in a special area of conservation, SAC. I ask Mr. Meade to clarify at what stage this project is at.

We got welcome news a few weeks ago too about Monard. It is an area outside of Blarney where we hope a few thousand houses are going to be built. The initial phase of this project at Monard has been announced. It has come through the planning process. The developer there is eager to commence. Down the track, pardon the pun, there is a plan to have a rail station there. Where does this appear on Irish Rail's timelines? I am not going to hold Mr. Meade to any of these time scales. It would be good, though, if he could share an indicative timeline with us. From speaking to people in Cork, the stations in Blackpool and Tivoli, especially, are probably ahead of the project at Monard. It would be good if Mr. Meade could give us an update on the new stations and their roll-out.