Damien English (Meath, Fine Gael)

They have put forward plans and the funding is not coming. I certainly will find the statement made by the Taoiseach in this regard. I know the Minister did not say it. When it is brought up on this side of the House it is as an attempt to back the Minister's fight to get more money for RAPID. That is the only reason for raising it, not to embarrass anybody and certainly not the Minister. It is to prove the point. People were given commitments and now we want that money brought forward so we can get results. My fear is that people in disadvantaged areas are not getting all the help they need. They are getting it in certain places but more could be done. Other Departments need to buck up and do more. We all know that if much more money was being spent on the RAPID programme, we would hear about it, so €300 million is the maximum. That is a long way short of the €2 billion.

Does the Minister know whether there is to be increased funding for the RAPID areas next year, even in his own Department? Are there commitments in place? As regards the long-term future of RAPID, is there something we do not know about? That is a cause of some worry and it is something the Minister has referred to on a few occasions.

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