Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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I heard that said earlier about the region and I appreciate that, but I would ask for a breakdown. I have a concern in regard to the region. Last week the Department of Transport was before the committee. In the south east there are Waterford Regional Airport and Rosslare Europort. The previous Government granted funding of €15 million to Waterford Regional Airport which was to be combined between the local regional councils, with the balance to come from the Department of Transport. I heard last week that money is no longer on the table. However, Waterford Regional Airport is in the process of a planning application to extend the runway. Rosslare Europort, as we know, has had an exponential increase in traffic of 400%, and yet not one shilling in Government funding has come from any Department, except from the Office of Public Works, OPW, which provided housing for the regulatory agencies such as customs. As Rosslare is now without a doubt the country's most important piece of strategic infrastructure and the regional airport is not far behind, will Dr. Quinn identify for me what is required from a regional perspective to attract the investment?