Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

I take issue with some of the remarks made by the Minister. As a former employee of the sugar company, I suffered a double whammy when the sugar factory in Carlow closed. Following the closure the then Government created a great deal of hope in the area when the Progressive Democrats Party promised that train stations would be built all over the place to collect beet to transport to Mallow. The rug was quickly pulled from under that idea, however, and those who suffered were the large number of people who benefited from the sugar industry.

While the Minister indicated that the Government made a strong case, the facts available to us suggest that was not the case.

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