Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)

In my short time of four minutes it is difficult to express my frustration to the House with this Finance Bill. I shall take the time to outline to the House the neglect of County Wexford over a long period of time, particularly over the last ten years of this Administration. Wexford has been left behind in terms of investment and infrastructure, foreign direct investment, tourism, education, agriculture and a wide range of other areas because of this Government's neglect of the county. If one takes the national development plan announced only two weeks ago, the only place Wexford got a mention in the document's 300 pages was on the map at the very back, along with every other county. The Government has totally neglected the infrastructure of County Wexford. To say it has not been highlighted sufficiently over the last number of years would be a lie. The gate to Europe is Rosslare Europort. We are still waiting for the Enniscorthy bypass. Hopefully we shall see the completion of the Gorey bypass over the next couple of months. We still await the New Ross river crossing. Now, we are being told we are being left behind because the Ferns bypass is to be completed at the same time as Enniscorthy work.

The CSO figures place County Wexford in 19th position and that is not a good placing for the county with the gateway to Europe. I am not a great fan of statistics. Nonetheless, if one compares Wexford to the BMW region, the south-east county is way behind. The Government has not created too many jobs in Wexford over the last ten years, but it has lost jobs there during that time. When one compares other counties to Wexford in terms of inputs from the IDA and Enterprise Ireland one sees that these agencies have not looked after the south east by any manner or means. This is something an alternative Government will do as has been done in the past. In the three-year period 1994-97, when the rainbow Government was in power, there was more investment in Wexford than in last ten years.

In the short time left to this Dáil I want to put on record the fact that Wexford has been left behind. However, the electorate there knows an alternative Government will look after the people of County Wexford. I ask the Minister for Finance, while he is looking after the Laois-Offaly area, to give Wexford its fair slice of the cake.

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