Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

When we have this debate Government Ministers, unfortunately, tend to identify some successful things that have happened in particular areas. Undoubtedly some successful things are happening but, on balance, the Government is failing disastrously. Areas such as Offaly, Wexford, Carlow, Laois, Longford, Roscommon, Cavan, Westmeath and Monaghan have experienced the highest increases in unemployment in the State. Those areas are really badly serviced in respect of key communications infrastructure such as broadband and so forth, but many of them have had no IDA visits in the past two years. While it is easy to identify a handful of opportunities, the reality is that these areas are suffering significantly due to unemployment and emigration. A more proportionate response is required to redress this. How many IDA visits have these counties received since the Minister was appointed? I hope he will not dance around the question but give figures or, at least, appropriate estimates.

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