Paddy McHugh (Galway East, Independent)

I am surprised the Minister has not had discussions with the Minister for Transport on rural transport because in his capacity as Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs he has a major responsibility to address the anomaly that exists in rural Ireland in that some areas have a transport system while others do not. My constituency of Galway South, for example, has a rural transport service but north-east Galway does not have such a service.

The Minister will agree that senior citizens living in this city have free travel and can travel throughout the city at no personal cost. On other occasions the Minister or his colleagues may have made great play out of the fact that senior citizens are entitled to free transport. One may be entitled to something but if it does not exist, surely the Minister will agree it cannot be availed of. I put it to the Minister that this is discrimination against the people in rural Ireland, those whom the Minister is charged with representing in his capacity as Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. Our Constitution, which was crafted by the Minister's grandfather, purports to treat all the people equally but the Minister and his Government are upholding a situation where discrimination is being practised against people in this country.

See this speech in context