Derek Nolan (Galway West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim mo bhuíochas leis an Aire Stáit. I appreciate this is what the Department is telling the Minister of State and it is probably accurate. However, will the Minister of State use her offices in a manner broader than the remit suggested in the answer today? Will she examine the situation and have her Department contact the county council and some of the county councillors, Galway Rural Development and FORUM in order to realise and to understand that there is not a single stakeholder in Galway who is happy with the decision or what is happening, or who is happy that the situation as it is unfolding will work for the communities.

We need to try to recognise that what happened in the LCDC happened at a time when people were probably not as focused as they ought to have been on the issue. Sometimes decisions get made, as we all know, in this House which the Government has got wrong. In this case, the decision was wrong. Will the Minister of State use her office and her Department as a way and means of bringing the stakeholders together to find a way forward? At first, the Minister of State should talk to these stakeholders and listen to them. She will hear the real and genuine concerns from all sides. Will she use her office to examine any possible avenue, be it negotiation, working with Pobal, subcontracting or retendering, to find a way to give Galway Rural Development its piece on the east of the county and FORUM Connemara the piece for Connemara and uphill on the west of the Corrib? This is extremely important. We need to ensure that we continue the vital services which currently serve this region and Connemara.

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