Beverley Flynn (Mayo, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Taoiseach for making the time available for this debate in response to a notice of motion I submitted several months ago. Since submitting the notice, I have raised the matter in the House as often as the opportunity to do so presented itself. I record my disappointment, and the disappointment of the people of the west, at the absence of the Taoiseach for today's debate. We are discussing the crucial matter of the national development plan as it refers to the Border, midlands and west region, yet the Taoiseach did not see fit to arrange the Order of Business to facilitate his presence to deal with the issue. Not only that, but the Minister for Finance, who is responsible for the delivery of the NDP, is not here to engage in this serious and pressing debate.

It is important that I sketch why the motion appeared on the Order Paper in the first place. One of the central objectives of the national development plan was to reduce the economic and social disparities which existed between different parts of the country. To that end, a regionalisation arrangement was put in place for Ireland. The BMW region, which qualified for Objective One status, was to be given the required investment to close the acknowledged gap between it and the south and east region. This was to be done by fostering balanced regional development, promoting social inclusion, improving competitiveness and developing economic and employment growth.

Two important observations can be made regarding the matters that will be discussed during the course of this debate. The first is that we are talking in regional terms, and while much of what I will say pertains to my county, the issues and concerns raised are of regional significance. The problems and deficiencies in opportunity which affect County Mayo apply equally across the BMW region.

Second, I do not wish the debate to be seen as one of the west versus the east or of rural versus urban. Nobody would deny that the problems of Dublin and the south and east region are urgent and that they need to be addressed, but this should not mean that all our efforts and resources should go into one region to the detriment of the other. It is all about equal opportunity. The citizens of Mayo, Sligo, Roscommon and Donegal are entitled to the same quality of services as their cousins in Dublin, Cork or Waterford.

Four years of the current national development plan have now elapsed. Although substantial progress has been made on a national scale and investment is running at a high level, serious concerns are being raised because far from closing the gap between the two regions, that gap is growing even wider as the clock ticks down to the end of the national development plan. In global terms, the regional breakdown of NDP spending shows €22.8 billion has been spent in the south and east region while €8.3 billion was spent in the BMW region. However, a more crucial figure than that must be revealed. In the south and east region spending represents 92% of what was forecast, but in the BMW region, the figure falls back to 75% of that forecast.

It is perhaps cold comfort of a sort that this widening underspend between the regions has been publicly acknowledged at Government level by the Taoiseach, the Minister for Transport, Deputy Cullen, when he visited my constituency recently and, more repeatedly, by the Minister for Finance. The Minister, Deputy Cowen, wrote to me in January. In the course of his letter he agreed that investment in the BMW region is behind forecast because major infrastructural projects in the south and east region, especially in the areas of roads and public transport, had to receive priority due to the major pressure on infrastructure in the region, notably in the greater Dublin area. Not content with spelling out where the real priorities lay, the Minister went on with what I can only take to be a flash of dark humour in stating that the BMW region does benefit from investment in transport in the south and east region, because better transport links to the major ports, airports and national markets, especially Dublin, benefit the whole country.

The Minister obviously took a liking to this novel explanation of the spending gap because he returned to the same theme when he addressed the joint meeting of the regional assemblies in Tullamore, once again acknowledging that the BMW region spend has fallen behind. He accepted that the BMW region has to date lagged behind in spending on roads and transport. He stated that the Government is committed to addressing this issue over the remaining life of the plan. He reminded his audience that it was important to note that investment in roads, no matter in what part of the country, is of benefit nationally as well as regionally.

However, another reference in the address by the Minister has set alarm bells ringing with development groups and agencies in the BMW region. Referring to balanced regional development, the Minister appeared to suggest that the new template for investment priorities would not relate to the two region era of old, but to the national spatial strategy. He stated, ominously, that the focus of the strategy would not be on a two-region approach, but rather that development would be delivered through the designated gateways and development hubs.

I hope I am not reading something into this observation which is not there. I ask the Minister of State, Deputy Killeen, to convey my concerns to the Minister for Finance. To my mind there is a whiff of change which I do not like. If there is any attempt to move the goal posts, blur the line between the regions, or in any way to diminish the entitlement of the BMW region, this will be resisted tooth and nail. What happens after 2006 is for another day.

I return again to the figures given by the Minister in reply to my parliamentary question of 30 November last. No Government could be proud of the progress of the two major operational programmes of the national development plan that are specifically geared towards eliminating the economic and social disparity of which I have spoken. Of the €15,986 million overall spend to date on economic and social infrastructure, 27% has been earmarked for the BMW region and 73% for the south and east region. However, when the figures are calculated, they show that while the BMW spend has fallen back to 22%, that of the south and east region has exceeded its target and reached 78%.

Dealing in percentages might not always give a clear picture so I will translate them into euro and cent. Spending in the BMW region on the Economic and Social Infrastructure Operational Programme alone was €716 million less than promised over the first four years of the NDP. In the vital operational programme for funding of the productive sector, spending in the BMW region over the same four years is a significant €1,095 million less than what was set out. By any yardstick this is a truly significant underspend of what was projected and promised. At best, it means that vital infrastructure, without which industrial or economic progress cannot be made, has been denied to the region most in need of it. At worst, it raises fears that by the end of 2006 when the NDP runs out, a large tranche of unspent BMW funding will either be lost or will be reallocated to projects in other regions.

In addition to all of these, there is the question of the extra expenditure, above and beyond that published in the national development plan, which we are told is soon to be approved. Media reports suggest that Cabinet approval is about to be given for a further €3.2 billion for infrastructure in the greater Dublin area. If this is the case, and in order to preserve the accepted 2:1 funding ratio between the two regions, then the BMW region must be given an equal opportunity by the allocation of pro rata funds of €1.6 billion. The BMW region has infrastructural needs which are every bit as urgent and pressing as those of the Dublin area.

While the spending.gap extends over many sectors, the most pressing need is for immediate and meaningful investment in transport and energy. All of the State agencies, most notably the IDA and Enterprise Ireland, have stated that they continue to experience great difficulty in attracting jobs and enterprise to the west because of the deficiencies in transport and energy infrastructure. If the west is not to be left at a disadvantage in the global and national marketplace and if balanced regional development is to mean anything, then the gaps in vital infrastructural capabilities will have to be made good.

Road improvements in recent years have done much to cut journey times and improve accessibility but, again, performance is lagging well behind projection. The figure for NDP expenditure on national roads to the end of 2004 tells its own story. Only 54% of the figure forecast has been spent in the BMW region compared to 121% in the south and east region. The N5, the main artery from Dublin to Mayo, is severely deficient for over 25 miles. The portion of road from Ballaghadereen to Strokestown is unfit and unsafe to accommodate heavy traffic. The N5 from Castlebar to Westport needs to be rerouted immediately to take account of traffic demand.

While every national road in the country — Dublin to Waterford, Dublin to Cork, Dublin to Limerick and Dublin to Galway — reflect the importance to a modern road network, the national route from Dublin to Mayo is a Third World trackway and Third World utility. It is ludicrous to talk of regional upgrading when the national road into and out of the west is incapable of accommodating two streams of heavy vehicles without risk to road users. The N59 from Ballina to Belmullet is seriously neglected. Although welcome progress has been made on the N26, it is still far behind what is required. The road network serving the more distant areas, which have significant tourism potential, is unable to take the volume of traffic we need to attract.

A high quality, reliable energy supply is crucial to the development of the region, yet the entire northern half of the BMW region is dependent on an electricity supply which is third rate, unreliable and constantly subject to a high risk of outage. For example, one of Mayo's biggest health care industries lost €50,000 in a two-day period over Christmas because of the collapse of the electricity supply. We are crying out for industry but the truth is, as the IDA points out, that we cannot attract any energy intensive operation to the west because of the lack of necessary infrastructure.

There is an urgent need to extend the 220 kV line from Galway to Castlebar and on to Sligo through Ballina, to close the loop and adequately deal with the power needs of the region. It is ironic that the power deficiency has not been addressed due to a lack of funding but rather a lack of political will. The ESB has both the technical and financial resources to increase the power supply, but to do so ahead of demand requires specific Government approval through the granting of a public service order. I urge the Government to immediately put in train the procedures required to enable the ESB to lay an effective power line to the region.

A cost efficient energy supply is vital to the competitiveness of industry and commerce in the BMW region. The Corrib gas pipeline is due to come on stream within a matter of two years. It would be a gross negation of the concept of regional development if this gas supply was simply piped through onto the national grid without being utilised for the benefit of the region it passes through. There is widespread support in the west for linking the Corrib gasline through Knock Airport, Ballaghadereen, Carrick on Shannon, Boyle and Sligo, as well as serving the towns directly on the route of the pipeline. Westport Chamber of Commerce has already made a persuasive and detailed case to Bord Gáis for an extension of the pipeline to serve industry, hotels and facilities in the town. Equally for towns like Ballaghadereen, whose industries are already struggling with the challenge of being on the periphery, access to gas supply is vital to survival.

The Joint Committee on Transport recently heard a submission from Knock Airport on its need for meaningful investment. Knock Airport is a key asset as a point of access and as a catalyst for economic revival in this area. It occupies a strategically central location in the BMW.region in terms of the national spatial strategy, and is at the axis of planned development. Independent market analysis shows that the airport has the potential to expand the passenger base in the UK, Europe and North America, with a conservative target of 1 million passengers by 2009.

Knock Airport is a proven driver for economic development in the region. Its ability to promote tourism and to drive inward investment is recognised by all the main regional statutory bodies. In 2004, the airport supported 500,000 bed nights and €37 million in tourism spend alone. No adequate funding mechanism is currently in place outside the normal safety and security funding set for Irish regional airports in general. I call for the recognition of the special status of Knock Airport as the key to economic regeneration of the area, and I fully support the call for special provision to be made to enable the airport achieve its full potential as a driving force for the creation of new industry. In particular, I ask that consideration be given to a new mechanism of funding which would meet the needs of Knock Airport in fulfilling its development potential.

Finally there is the long sought proposal to reopen the western rail corridor, from Sligo to Limerick. The Taoiseach has already indicated his support for this particular project, and this is warmly welcomed. I understand the preliminary report of the working group appointed to examine the case for the reopening of the line will be with the Government inside the next few weeks. Following that will be the announcement of the ten year envelope of rail expansion projects by the Government, within which we expect the western rail corridor to be included.

However, before this happens, I want to put down a marker on behalf of the people of this region, as well as on behalf of every local government and statutory agency from Sligo to Ennis which are fully behind this plan and the community groups, development agencies, chambers of commerce and representative bodies which support it. The western rail corridor in its entirety must be included in the first five years of this rail plan, and that the required investment of €365 million be ringfenced securely and unalterably within the programme.

If, as it says, the Government is truly serious about balanced regional development, then here is the golden opportunity to put that ideal into practical application. The western rail corridor will be one of the most significant developments in infrastructure ever put in place in the west. It will be the priming pump for development. It will, at a stroke, help eliminate the inadequacies, which have plagued the region for so long. It will represent equality of opportunity for our people, economic competitiveness for our industries and most of all will be self-sustaining.

There is no need for me to revisit the cogent, persuasive arguments which, after 26 years of campaigning, have finally brought the western rail corridor onto the national agenda for development. It meets perfectly all the criteria against which investment in this region is measured. It is totally consistent with the national spatial strategy, linking as it does the three gateways of Sligo, Galway and Limerick, and the four designated hub towns of Ballina, Castlebar, Tuam and Ennis-Shannon. In turn it connects to the 20 towns in the region already served by main line rail routes.

The annual running cost of the western rail corridor will be met by generated income. It has enormous rail freight potential. The route is already in the ownership of the State. larnród Éireann has the required capacity to complete the entire route within five years. It will open vital tourism connections to Knock and Shannon Airports. Commuter services within the region will be accommodated with huge savings in time, traffic congestion and road maintenance. Third level students will be facilitated by easy access to their colleges. All of the hospitals in the west and midwest region will be accessible by rail and the major centres for medical treatment in Limerick, Galway and Sligo will all be served by the rail corridor.

I want to say something in support of those communities that may not be on the main radar screen for attention but which nonetheless are what the national development plan and its benefits are meant to serve. All across the west region there are small towns and villages struggling to survive. They are the heart of rural Ireland, but in spite of the prosperity and economic advances, find survival just as difficult now as in the days prior to the Celtic tiger.

Balanced regional development is not only about gateways and hubs. We must not lose sight of the needs and aspirations of those smaller local centres, villages and parishes, where people are proud of their own identity, with church, school, football club and community hall at their heart. We will be returning to these issues many times in the future and I assure the House of my intention to vigorously pursue the claims of the BMW region to fair and equitable treatment.

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