Tony McCormack (Offaly, Fianna Fail)

First, I congratulate the Cathaoirleach on his appointment. I wish him well as Cathaoirleach of this committee for this term of Government. As was said earlier, this committee is an important one, especially in the context of the new national development plan which will hopefully come out in July.

Infrastructure has a huge part to play in the running of the country. Addressing the issues of the day - housing and the delivery of same, water, power generation and green infrastructure - is vitally important. I look forward to having those entities in here to question them to try to get to where we need to go with regard to having that infrastructure in place in order for us to deliver the houses that are required. Transport, roads, rail and air are hugely important areas in making sure the country runs efficiently, particularly airports and the cap on Dublin Airport.

Like everyone else here, I look forward to being involved in this committee and working with everyone on it.