Mr. Feargal O'Rourke:

I am well aware of Cork East because I am married to a Corkwoman. I have been down there. I mentioned before the Deputy came in that IDA Ireland does not look at counties or towns but at regions. We have eight regions. This is because the spillover effect tends to go far beyond the town in which an enterprise locates and can bleed into neighbouring counties and areas. However, the Deputy can take it that while the specific issue of where enterprises go is a matter for the executive, the board we will be ensuring regionalisation and balancing investment in the eight regions as much as it can. Therefore, if we see areas that have not received the right amount of investment relative to others, we will need to direct investment towards them. With regard to equality, I promise the Deputy that we will ensure the regions are fairly treated. The target of having over 50% of investment outside the Dublin area has been met and will be exceeded when the four-year period ends, which will be at the end of this year. The balance between the regions is as important as the balance between Dublin and the rest of the country.