James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)

I raised the possibility of providing a central rail link, linking towns in the midlands such as Athlone, Mullingar, Longford, Portlaoise, Roscommon, Cavan and Edgeworthstown. There could be spurs off this central line. It would improve the rail infrastructure for the entire midlands area. In addition to joining up Athlone to Mullingar, the central line would be of great benefit to schools and young people from the midlands accessing the Athlone Institute of technology. Longford and Westmeath have historically been poorly served in terms of rail links to the north of the country. I would like to see something happening to improve the lot of the people in the midlands.

While fully supporting the principle of one regulatory body for public transport in Ireland, Fine Gael opposes this Bill because it maintains a veil of protection around CIE. It does not offer any real competition in the Irish bus market. It does very little to look after the interests of people living in rural Ireland.

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