John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to say a few words on the Bill. When my party was bringing forward legislation before going out of government, I was probably one of the few members of that party who objected to the amalgamation of the VECs and the decision to reduce the number of them. I felt a county such as Wexford, with a population of 150,000, needed its own VEC structure rather than having one merged with that in Waterford. The vast county of Waterford extends right to the border of the constituency of the Minister of State, Deputy Sherlock. There will be a lot of long-distance learning if the offices are to be based in Waterford. The Minister, Deputy Howlin, assured us they would stay in Wexford.

See this speech in context