Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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Cuirim fáilte roimh na finnéithe. It is heartening to have that outline of progress and indeed this shared island initiative as launched by Deputy Micheál Martin in the latter half of 2020. Much as been achieved in a relatively short space of time. There was cynicism initially at the announcement of the unit's establishment, but, thankfully, all political viewpoints are now clearly in favour of the good work that is under way and that is so visible.

We see the Ulster Canal in my constituency. That major project would not have gone ahead without the significant financial injection from the shared island fund, which is very welcome. It builds on the Ballinamore-Ballyconnell Canal, as it was known before the restoration of it to the Shannon-Erne Waterway, which is in my immediate home area.

Many projects that are now being funded were amplified on many occasions by deputations and groups coming before the committee. I remember groups from Donegal, Tyrone and Monaghan coming before this committee regarding the N2 from Clontibert to the Border and the A5. It is great to see that commitment of very substantial funding.

I look forward to the development of multipurpose stadium in Casement Park in west Belfast. I also look forward to the Ulster final continuing to be played in Clones in my constituency. Cavan has been a very successful Ulster county over many years and has enjoyed many happy days in Clones. We had them in Casement Park as well, so we look forward to more good days in Clones in Ulster finals in the future. Hopefully, we will all be able to go to other events in Casement Park in the future be they music events or, please God, the European Championships or some other GAA games.

When we visited west Belfast and the Shankill Road on numerous occasions, the lack of educational attainment and the divergence in the level of educational attainment in this State and Northern Ireland were issues that always came up. The witnesses mentioned UNESCO world heritage status. Counties Cavan and Fermanagh are fortunate in having had for quite some time the first UNESCO recognised cross-Border geopark in the world in Cuilcagh Lakelands UNESCO Global Geopark. It has a very good proposal with the shared island unit as well. It is a fascinating initiative. I know Gráinne O'Connor from that group presented at one of the shared island unit's forums.

It was at one of the first meetings in Omeath following the establishment of the shared island unit that I, along with An Cathaoirleach and others, suggested that the unit draw on the expertise and corporate knowledge of our local authorities. This was because many of those local authorities worked with their counterparts North of the Border and tried to do projects together during the darkest days on this island. To be fair, there were people who were Members of this House and members of local authorities who were way ahead of their time in their thinking about what could be done on a cross-Border and all-Ireland basis. I am very glad that local authorities are central to the work of the shared island unit. When the Tánaiste, Deputy Micheál Martin, was Taoiseach, he announced in Cavan the feasibility studies referred to by Ms Deane for a local authority in our jurisdiction collaborating with colleagues North of the Border to put forward proposals regarding different initiatives. I remember how on the day in Cavan, the cathaoirligh of the different local authorities, North and South, were there. Regardless of the political viewpoints they held, they embraced the concept of getting funding for initiatives that they often thought could never be realised so drawing on local authorities is very important.

At my request, this committee met with the county councils in Cavan and Monaghan regarding the development of enterprise centres. The witnesses would have heard me speak previously, and I also put questions to the Taoiseach and Tánaiste about the importance of developing a network of enterprise centres in Cavan and Monaghan. Both counties struggle to attract inward investment because of the history of troubles on our doorstep over the years. Enterprise centres have been the catalyst for many firms. Many international firms in my constituency that are household names started out in enterprise centres. I am speaking about the local authorities in Cavan and Monaghan because I am more familiar with them. They have put very scarce resources into the development of such work space.

Funds are available from Enterprise Ireland and other national agencies to develop the buildings, but buying and developing the sites and doing the groundwork, such as providing the necessary water, sewerage and other services, is a huge burden on local authorities. When this committee met the local authorities in Cavan and Monaghan, we put forward the idea of our councils working in collaboration with the northern counterparts. Could specific funding to enable the less financially resourced councils to develop work space be provided? I am very glad about the recent announcement of the enterprise scheme. Detailed workings on that may not have come to fruition. If my request could be fed into the decision-making process to give local authorities some assistance in preparing for the development of actual work space, such as groundworks and the purchasing of sites, that would be welcome. The success rate of enterprise centres has been significant and we can build on that.

Individual representation at the shared island fora has been significant. It is a great dialogue process. It was great to see the First Minister and deputy First Minister playing camogie yesterday. I think of the work of Linda Ervine in east Belfast. Whatever could be done to support her work in the development of naonraí and primary education would be a great return for the taxpayers' investment in the shared island unit. I applaud the good work of the witnesses and all those who have been involved in the shared island unit since it was established. We look forward to more projects being funded.